Vampire Wars
by airedalegirl1
Summary: When you have a gift everybody wants and are prepared to go to any lengths to obtain what do you do? Civil war has torn the vampire world apart and now new leaders rule but for how long? Can the rebels, led by one Major Whitlock and his mate win the day and topple the new regime or will the world be plunged into bloodletting and madness? Collaboration with katandjasper J/B
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

 **Aro Volturi**

The smoke was slow to clear, the breeze had died down and so the plumes of thick purple smoke hung in the air scenting it cloyingly. we hadn't believed it could happen, we had grown complacent and arrogant over the years as no one came to challenge us for the leadership of our world.

The Romanians had crawled back into their hole and been silent for centuries and although we kept an eye on them at first other things had slowly taken our attention away. Now we were paying for our sins as our numbers were decimated by overwhelming forces, the cream of the guard destroyed, our home, our citadel, reduced to mere rubble and even the town lay in ruins.

"We have to leave now, while we still can Aro. There is nothing you can do now except survive to fight back another day."

I turned to look at Felix, my oldest and most faithful servant, one arm hanging by no more than a thread was cradled in the other, his face a mixture of emotions. He was correct of course, if we delayed any longer the Romanians would hunt us down and execute us too.

Caius stood, head down, shaking as he had been since hearing of his wife's death at the hands of Stefan's mate who had found a way into our citadel as a companion to our wives. Little had we realised we were allowing a serpent into our midst. Would he survive Athenadora's death? I had no way of knowing, Marcus had but that was largely down to Chelsea's gift tying him to me but Chelsea was dead, one of the smoking pyres that lay outside the town walls. We had escaped by the skin of our teeth, warned just in time by Felix who had seen faces he recognised in the town square. How the Romanians had gotten so close without alerting us was a mystery but we suspected they had spies, double agents, working within the citadel itself. We had hurried down to the old catacombs where forgotten tunnels, once used as sewers, had led outside to freedom and possibly escape, halfway down the mountainside.

Somehow Felix had arranged for two of the newer guards to fetch a car and be waiting for us when we emerged. Marcus, Felix, Sulpicia, Heidi, and I squeezed into it leaving the others to find their own way out of Italy, back to our ancestral home in Greece. I was relieved that we had decided to keep the villa as a sanctuary should any danger befall us and this certainly qualified. It was kept a secret even from the most trusted of our guard, except of course Felix looked after by a human couple who belonged to a family that had passed the task down the generations. It would do in the short term as somewhere to gather whatever of our forces still survived. They knew only to make their way to Piraeus and wait for further instructions.

As we drove away Felix started to make a list of those we had lost in the fighting and with each name I understood more clearly just how difficult it was going to be to reclaim our thrones from Stefan and Vladimir. The greatest loss was the twins, Jane, and Alec, the Romanians had targeted them first knowing how powerful they were. It was overwhelming odds that allowed this, that and the speed and surprise of the attack. Jane couldn't stop so many at once and Alec wasn't given time to build up his gift and as a result was one of the first to fall.

The jet was waiting at the private airfield close to Pisa and we were in the air before the Romanians could reach us. They had killed the pilot as a precaution before the attack but Felix could fly the jet albeit awkwardly one handed, and the crude bomb they had planted on the plane had been discovered by Heidi and thrown out before it could explode, once we were in the air. We filed a false flight plan and flew low enough to evade the air traffic control radar system, landing at a small private and very exclusive airfield in our home country, Greece.

We called it home but none of us had set foot here in centuries. Yet, looking around it seemed initially as if nothing had really changed, the fields, the rolling countryside, the mountains in the distance, but as I turned the encroachment of towns and villages became more apparent.

Sulpicia took my arm,

" Look, Aro, home. We made it, we're safe for now."

"Home? Yes, perhaps. Safe? No, my dear. On the contrary, we will never be safe as long as Stefan and Vladimir are alive. We may have evaded them for the time being but they will never give up looking for us. They can never be sure of their grip on power so long as we are still alive. Caius is gone but Marcus and I still exist and they know we will never stop until we have them warming our throne room with their pyre."

"But Volterra is in ruins, we can never go back there."

"We must. Volterra will rise from the ashes and we will rise with it. I shall build a new citadel on the buried heads of our enemies."

Sulpicia shuddered, she was much more soft-hearted than I but even she must realise our only safety lie in overpowering our enemies and making sure they could never threaten us again.

The villa, our ancestral home, still looked familiar and the couple who had been looking after it were happy enough to be given a year's pay in advance and be sent on their way. They asked no questions and took the car we had rented back down to the rental company. The first thing Felix did was to order Heidi back to Piraeus to collect together those of the guard who appeared and send them on to the villa then he and Marcus went to check on the perimeter of the villa grounds to make sure there were no surprises lurking around before setting off to hunt and heal completely.

Sulpicia took Athenadora inside but I had my doubts that she would stay although, in truth, there was nowhere else for her to go. I wondered too about Marcus, he was no longer under Chelsea's influence so would he stay or would he abandon me now? As if he knew I was thinking about him he strode over and sat beside me on one of the low garden walls.

"The perimeter is clear but as soon as we have some men I will set up a watch, we can't take our safety for granted, even here."

I nodded my thanks and waited sensing he hadn't finished speaking yet.

"Well, what now brother? You no longer have your gifted protégés, no army, no castle to defend. What do you intend doing?"

Was this a way of finding out how I was thinking? Whether I intended to surrender?

"I intend taking our crowns back from the usurpers, would you expect anything less of me?"

He laughed, a genuine laugh full of mirth and I turned to look at him,

"If you had said anything else I would be worried but it won't be easy. The Romanians have the advantages now and we….."

He looked around,

"It appears we have nothing…...except, of course, for each other."

"So, you intend staying with me, Marcus? You don't think a new start might be more advantageous to you?"

"Where else would I go? Did you really think I would leave you? That the only reason I stayed was because I had no choice? You underestimate me, Aro. If I had wanted to I could have broken free of Chelsea a long time ago. I learned to live with your crime, with the murder of my mate. The only thing that kept me going was the fact that if I left then the Volturi would be left to you and Caius and would be extremely unbalanced. You need me to temper your excesses, or at least until now. Now I have a purpose again, a reason to go on. The Romanians must be toppled from our thrones before they destroy not only our world but that of the humans too. They have no idea how to live in the shadows, their arrogance will have them turning the humans into cattle, the world will be swimming in blood and humans and vampires will be at open war."

I hadn't really thought that far ahead but he was right of course. When the Romanians had ruled our kind centuries ago there had been terrible wars, the humans hunting the blood drinking monsters who hunted them and vampire fighting vampire for the best hunting grounds. Our kind had come close to extinction. This time, Stefan and Vladimir would ensure they had control over all others on the planet, human and vampire alike, and everything that mattered to us, art, literature, music, would all be destroyed as they ransacked cities and towns spreading death and destruction as they took control of everything.

"You really think they will take the same approach that lost them the thrones before?"

"I guarantee it, but this time, they will be more ruthless and act far more quickly. You saw how they blitzed us, and that was just a beginning."


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

 **Carlisle**

When I heard from Aro I thought he was jesting at first, the Romanians taking control of our world again? It seemed unbelievable but the serious tone in which he spoke alerted me to the horrific truth.

"But how did they manage that Aro? Where are you? How did you manage to get away? Are you all safe?"

"How is not important Carlisle. The fact we did escape is the important thing but Caius was not so lucky, neither were the twins or Chelsea."

"They are all dead? It's hard to believe. What do you think Stefan and Vladimir will do now they have Volterra?"

I listened as he told me of the destruction of the Volturi citadel and their plans for the future.

"We need to build a new army Carlisle, we need all our friends to stand beside us."

"I see, you know that I am not a fighting man Aro, neither are my family, but we will help you in any other way we can."

"You don't seem to understand Carlisle. There are only two choices for those known to be friends of the Volturi, fight with us or die. The Romanians will never trust you or your family and those they are unable to trust they will certainly destroy."

I couldn't believe that Stefan and Vladimir would simply go around slaughtering anyone who didn't swear allegiance to them, it was such a waste of life. The Volturi were the only leaders I had ever known and all I knew of the Romanians was from Aro and Marcus who both had good reason to paint them as black as possible.

I called the rest of the family together and told them what I had learned from Aro. As I expected they were as sceptical as I about the forecast of doom and destruction. The Volturi had little effect on our lives and we had no reason to suspect a change in the leadership would be any different. The only person who remained silent was Jasper but then he rarely said much these days, not since Alice had left anyway.

Things had never quite been the same since Bella's birthday party although she was hardly to blame. We shouldn't have left as we did, I realised that in hindsight, it was unfair to Bella but the atmosphere in the family had changed. We had always stood together, made decisions together, but this time, I made the mistake of listening to Edward who was so upset by what had happened. It split the family into two camps, those who sided with Edward, Rose and myself and those who thought our sudden flight was wrong, Alice, Esme, and Emmett. Jasper was the only one who said nothing and I thought it was because he felt responsible for our flight but I was to be proved wrong.

Just before Alice left she came to speak to me and I finally understood, Jasper had kept silent because of Alice. She told me that she had blamed Jasper for ruining things but when he pointed out she should have seen and prevented the accident she changed her tack asking him why he had attacked Bella, a friend, a close friend of the family. When he defended himself explaining that he had been trying to protect Bella from the thirst he felt in every member of the family Alice finally understood. She hadn't seen the accident because she hadn't wanted to because it proved to her that Jasper cared more for Bella than her.

"I don't see that Alice."

She smiled at me sadly,

"I don't suppose you do Carlisle, but if Jasper cared enough about Bella to risk his relationship with me or the rest of the family then I don't mean that much to him. I don't blame him, Carlisle, I just can't stay knowing I come second in his affections."

"Alice, Bella isn't here and besides Jasper was only trying to protect her, he doesn't have feelings for her. I think you are looking at this all wrong unless of course you've seen something else."

She didn't answer me but the look in her eyes made me wonder. The two of them parted amicably enough which was something of a relief but Jasper withdrew into himself although as I pointed out to him, he hadn't done anything wrong in my eyes.

I"I guess we just see things differently then Carlisle, I feel responsible for driving Alice away. I offered to leave instead but she said I needed your support more than she did and she knew where she was headed."

Now, it seemed, Edward was considering going back to Forks to try again with Bella although I did point out that might be a really bad idea. Especially now the leadership of our world was in flux.

"We don't know how the Romanians will react to humans who have relationships with our kind, it was difficult enough with the Volturi but you wouldn't want to put Bella in any danger now would you, Edward?"

Esme and Rosalie backed me on this and Edward gave up on the idea at least for a while,

"Let's see how things pan out with our new leaders before we make any decisions. It won't be long before things settle down and we can see how the land lies then."

At first, nothing seemed to have changed, we heard no news and there were no rumors of anything happening except that the new center of our world was now in Romania. Stefan and Vladimir had taken control of our world back to its ancient home in their castle in the Carpathian mountains leaving Volterra a pile of rubble.

Eleazar and Carmen came to visit when they heard the news and he was much more concerned than I of the changes.

"I remember speaking to a man who knew Stefan and Vladimir when they were in power before the Volturi took over and it wasn't a pretty story Carlisle. Their rule was a time of terror and violence for all concerned, and not only for the humans. In those days the humans were much more spread out, communications were difficult and the Romanians tended to stay in Eastern Europe. Stories of horror came out of the countries around their home and any who stood against them disappeared never to be seen again. Humans were treated as cattle and eventually they staged an uprising and almost wiped out our kind in their fear. If there were somewhere I could take my family to hide from Stefan and Vladimir I would, Carlisle."

"Don't you think you may be overreacting just a little Eleazar? It's been almost a year and I have heard nothing that leads me to believe we are in any danger. Have you?"

"No, but it's just a matter of time trust me, Carlisle. You and I, anyone who has shown friendship to the Volturi will be rounded up and killed or taken as prisoners to Romania."

I pointed out that the Volturi who were widely rumoured to be living in Greece hadn't been touched or even approached by the Romanians but that still didn't persuade Eleazar he was mistaken.

"They are just consolidating their position, recruiting an army, surely you've heard that much Carlisle?"

I had to admit I had but then they needed a guard just as much as the Volturi had and as they had no powerful gifts, at least to my knowledge, they needed the numbers.

"I wouldn't be so sure they have no gifts, they've been planning this for a very long time and they wouldn't have acted unless they were sure they could win. To lose would have meant their destruction."

"Do you know for sure?"

"That they have gifts? No, but I would be willing to bet my life on it, Carlisle. Watch yourself, stay low and pray they forget all about you."

He and Carmen only stayed three days and they were uneasy the whole time, I think Eleazar was worried that the Romanians might decide it was a good time to attack with us all together. Either that or they were worried about leaving the girls alone for too long. I drove them to Seattle to catch their flight and before they left Eleazar gave me one more warning,

"I hear even the Guardians are concerned about the change in our leadership. Johnny H has put the tribes on high alert. Do you think he would do that without a good reason?"

"I don't know Eleazar, I know nothing about him, but as our enemy, it would only be good policy to watch carefully. He doesn't know the Romanians or what they are capable of. He's probably basing his actions on the same old wives tales you heard."

"You think so Carlisle? I hope you're right, I really do or we are all in terrible danger."


	3. Chapter 3

**Sorry about the confusion in Chapter One, Caius is alive not Athenadora. I have replaced the chapter. Love Jules xx**

 **Chapter Three**

 **Bella**

Life goes on or so the saying goes and now I know it's right, it doesn't matter how much pain you go through, how much you think you are going to die without the person you love more in this world than anyone else. Once they are gone you find a way to get through it all, you survive. Edward left me, told me he was bored, that he no longer wanted to be with me, and he took the family with him. They went without a word of goodbye and left my world empty and cold. My mom and Charlie both tried to reach me, to tell me that I would survive the pain but the only person who could get through the glacier that surrounded me like an icy blanket was Jake.

He was like the sun slowly thawing the ice and allowing me to think and feel again. He knew there could never be anything between us, that my heart remained in its icy enclosure but he enabled me to go on. To do all the things I had to do, go to school, work, breathe, eat, sleep, and eventually even begin to dream, of a future without Edward. It wouldn't be the future I had dreamed of but it could be a future in which one day I might find a new love, a new direction to take.

Sometimes Edward still invaded my dreams, sometimes they all did, Emmett with his bear hugs and sunny grin, Alice with her boundless energy, Esme with her warm heart and Jasper with a quiet presence that told me everything would be OK, I was safe, he would watch over me. I welcomed these visitors in a way I could never welcome Edward's phantom. Whenever he visited I heard those spiteful, hurtful words that had crushed me and trapped me in that white freezing world. Then I wondered what I had ever seen in him, true that outward appearance was enough to capture any girl's heart, but inside…..well that was where the beast lived. I had never considered him a monster, not even when I discovered what he was. It wasn't until I heard those crushing words that I finally understood the true man behind the mask. Edward Cullen was cruel, heartless, and unfeeling, everything else had been an act. Perhaps he found it amusing to lead me on only to crush me but I found it hard to see any of the others doing such a terrible thing to me.

Now life led me in a new direction, I had always wanted to teach, to pass on my love of literature to others but now all I wanted was to get away from Forks, from everything that reminded me of Edward. I had been planning to go to college, we had talked about going to college together but of course, that was all gone like him.

No, I was going back to my mom's, to Florida where I had a job waiting as a librarian's assistant. I loved books so it seemed a good place to start and maybe when I settled I would go to college, train to be a librarian and work in a college library where people were keen to learn, where books were precious items and I could hide in the stacks when things got too much.

Both Charlie and Jake had tried to persuade me to stay in Forks but it held too many memories, besides which Jake would think I was staying for him and I wouldn't give him false hope, I loved him too much for that. As for dad well, he would soon slip back into his old ways and I would be no more than a memory. I promised to write and phone but I wouldn't give any assurances that I would be back any time soon.

Florida was a good choice, the sun and heat helped me to forget the Cullens, this wasn't the kind of place you would run into vampires, in general, they were far too conspicuous. I found my job rewarding especially the afternoons when we had the little kids in for story time. Their evident delight in the stories, the wide eyes as they looked at the pictures and the keenness to learn how to read for themselves reminded me of myself when I was little. Books were magical then, just like the stories inside them. Monsters were always slain unless they turned out to be good ones and the Princess always found her handsome Prince even if he did start out as a frog. Anything could happen in the world of make believe, unlike reality.

I met a few guys who asked me out and once or twice I forced myself to agree but they never amounted to much. It wasn't that I measured them against Edward, I didn't, but what I was looking for didn't seem to exist in real life. I wanted a man who made me feel the way Jasper had, safe and worthy. Maybe I wanted too much, I certainly envied Alice having someone who made her feel like she was the most important person in the world.

Maybe it was a vampire trait because I thought Esme and Rosalie were also in that category of women who were valued above everything. But then Edward had made me feel that way at first, in fact, right up until the very end when he told me how worthless and insignificant I really was.

Yet one day things changed, it was impossible to explain or point to anything in particular but the very air seemed charged. I got the feeling that the planet was holding its breath, that something monumental had happened that would alter the world I lived in. I asked my workmates if they had felt it but just got uncomprehending stares in reply. I guess it's difficult to answer a question when you don't understand it in the first place. I read the newspaper, watched the news on TV, even asked mom and Phil if they felt anything. My mom was one of those women who believed in the supernatural, feelings and portents and she agreed the atmosphere had changed,

"I think something is coming Bella. Something that will change our lives. There is a malignant force at work unseen and unknown for now, but soon….."

Phil just laughed, he took most of mom's weirdness with a pinch of salt, but I could see he looked uneasy. I watched and listened but nothing happened, yet the very air felt thick with danger and I found myself looking over my shoulder from time to time as if expecting to see a shadowy figure lurking close by.

Then one day there it was, the unknown figure in the shadows beckoning me to it and as I closed in I recognized Alice Cullen!

"Alice? What are you doing here?"

I looked around half expecting to see Edward appear too but she was alone and she looked…. terrified which scared me, after all, what was there that could terrify a vampire?

"Bella listen to me because I don't have long, they're closing in on me and they mustn't see us together.."

"Who Alice?"

"Hush and listen. You are in terrible danger Bella. You need to hide, find somewhere to hide, somewhere no one will know about. Things in my world have changed and evil is hunting down anyone who might be a threat. They'll find you Bella if you don't hide."

"Who Alice? I don't understand, you aren't making any sense."

"He'll find you eventually and keep you safe but you have to hide for now. You felt it, I know you did, the evil that's appeared. Go now, quickly Bella, they'll need your gift to win this war."

Before I could ask her any more she turned as if she heard something and then…...she was gone, leaving me alone to think about her words. Something had her running, something that scared her, something that threatened me too. A few seconds later I heard a faint scream and knew in my heart it was Alice. Whoever had been looking for her had finally caught up and she was either captured or dead. I caught a whiff of incense in the air and saw a puff of purple smoke float high above an alley a few streets away by the look of things before I turned and ran.

I had no idea where to go or who I was running from but I believed Alice and in my heart, I knew she was dead. She could have run, hidden so they couldn't find her, but instead she had chosen to track me down and warn me. Surely she must have seen that if she stayed in the open and tried to warn me it would mean death for her? She told me that someone would find me and keep me safe but who had she been referring to? Did she mean Edward?

If I needed help from him to keep safe then it must be a vampire who was looking for me. There was always Victoria, I had half expected she might hunt me down since it was my fault her mate had been killed but Alice had said something else, her world had changed and evil was on the loose. I heard her words in my head, "They'll need your gift to win the war". No, to win this war. From that I was led to believe the vampires were already at war, but with who? And what good was my gift? How could stopping someone from reading my mind help to win a war?


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

 **Jasper**

If there was a war then both sides would be looking for warriors to join them so I expected the invitation when it came even before Carlisle confided his fears to me.

"A letter for you Jasper, maybe it's from Alice."

Esme offered me the envelope and carried on upstairs just as the phone started ringing. I heard Rosalie pick up as I slit the envelope and took out the letter written in flowing script.

"Major Whitlock,

I am sure you have heard of our conquest by now and as a result, must understand our eagerness to recruit more of the best fighters in our world. I understand that Carlisle is affiliated to the Volturi or what survives of it but that does not mean you must follow him to the losing side. We offer you the opportunity to fight on the winning side and when the last resistance is crushed a permanent position as commander of our security force. You can reply to this letter by sending your acceptance to the above address and we will arrange to meet you and transport you to our new headquarters.

Yours

Stefan and Vladimir Romania."

They were incredibly sure that I would choose to fight for them and I wondered if the idea that my reply might be negative had ever entered their head. I assumed others would receive similar invitations. Peter, Garrett and Darius to name but a few. Did they really think we would turn our backs on our friends and families so quickly?

Rosalie's gasp of shock hadn't registered at first but when she called for Carlisle I ran back downstairs to find out what had happened.

"What's the matter, Rose?"

"It's Tanya. She wants to speak to Carmen, they thought she and Eleazar were going home yesterday but they never arrived so the girls assumed they were still here."

Carlisle came running down and took the receiver from Rosalie talking calmingly to Tanya although I could feel the fear in his mind. It was plain that something had happened to our friends either at the airport or when they landed in Alaska. Carlisle agreed to try tracing their movements and in the meantime told the girls to pack their things and fly to Seattle. He obviously feared the worst and thought they would be safer with us than alone in Denali.

 **Carlisle**

As soon as I heard Rose tell me who was on the phone my heart sank, Eleazar's gift was one both sides would want and as he had been Volturi for years the Romanians knew he would never work for them so as he had feared, they had kidnapped him and with Carmen in their hands too they had all the pressure they needed to force him to cooperate. The Romanians had made their first offensive move since snatching control and showed they were prepared to do whatever it took to get what they wanted. This thought made me see just how vulnerable my own family was. I had a gift they would look to taking control of, Edward, and, of course, there was Jasper, rumoured to be the best fighter in our world although we had seen little of his skills. I wondered if they had tracked Alice down yet, they might not be aware she had left us.

Eleazar had been right when he warned me to run but where could we go that would be safe? Stefan and Vladimir would never have acted unless they were confident that they had people in place ready to act fast. They had been watching Eleazar and I had to assume us too. When Jasper showed me the letter he had received I knew I was right, they were recruiting those they could and forcing those who would not be bought.

I tried contacting Darius but there was no reply on any of his numbers, he had already gone underground. He knew the Romanians would attempt to recruit him with his hatred of Caius so well known. What they didn't understand was that Darius was no man's servant. He would stay well hidden until he felt the time was right to act and which side he would favour was anyone's guess. While I did what I could to find out what had happened to Eleazar

I heard Jasper speaking to his friend Peter and warning him but he was too late, Peter and Charlotte had heard the rumours and were already on their way here.

"We heard the news and decided if there was going to be a fucking war we wanted to be at your side, Major. I take it you aren't taking up the Romanian's engraved invitation to dance?"

"Nope. Any news of the others? Garrett? Darius?"

"Not a word from the hermit but Garrett is going to join us as soon as he can get a flight. He's been in Russia with some female and hadn't heard the news until I told him."

It was good to know Jasper's friends were free and coming to join us but I was worried about Alice, she would be a real coup for the Romanians, and tried to reach her but she wasn't picking up which in itself was worrying, Alice was a slave to her cell phone. Yet she should have seen the dangers to herself and acted accordingly.

 **Jasper**

Like Carlisle, I had thought of Alice's gift, a valuable one and it reminded me of Bella Swan who also had a gift although how powerful it really was I had no idea. If the Romanians heard of a human who could shield her mind from Edward they would scour the earth until they found and captured her. I broached the subject with Carlisle while we both hoped that Alice had seen what was coming and found somewhere safe to hide. He was much more concerned with Bella when I pointed out what I had realized, as she had no way of protecting herself.

"We know Bella's gift is weak, she can hide her thoughts from Edward but she couldn't stop you influencing her emotions or Alice from seeing her. The Romanians don't have our inside knowledge and will certainly look for her if they think her gift is powerful."

"Then it's up to us to find her first. Peter will be here by morning so I'll wait for him, it might come to a fight with the Romanians if they find her first."

I didn't have to wait in the end because Emmett insisted on accompanying me and something told me the longer we waited the greater the chance of the Romanians hearing about her and finding her first. Just before we left Alistair, Carlisle's English friend, rang with a worrying development. The Romanians had issued a list of vampires and a few humans that they wanted. Some were to be taken dead or alive and that included Carlisle, Esme, Rosalie, and Emmett while others including myself, Peter, Alice, Edward and other gifts we knew had a bounty on their heads for anyone who could bring them in alive. Most worrying of all was to find Bella's name on the list. Someone had informed the Romanians of her gift probably without knowing the full extent of it.

Carlisle had rung the police station in Forks to enquire whether Chief Swan was there but he was off duty. He did manage to find that Bella had left, returning to live with her mother who now resided in Jacksonville Florida. It was a start and Emmett and I flew straight there hoping to find Bella safely at home. Edward had wanted to go with us but as Carlisle pointed out he was at the top of the Romanian shopping list and would, therefore, have more people looking for him while many knowing my reputation would leave me to other's braver, or more stupid.

Although we were only a couple of flying hours from Jacksonville it seemed to take forever to get there and I found myself becoming more and more wound up. Luckily Carlisle had arranged a rental car to be waiting for us and had sent Bella's new address to my phone.

"I tried ringing but there was no reply so it's down to you Jasper."

Unfortunately, we arrived mid afternoon and as a result were forced to wait until dusk before we dare venture out onto the streets. Emmett was as concerned as me, he had become close to Bella when she was Edward's girlfriend and had fought to stay in Forks when they broke up but he had been outvoted.

"Do you think she'll even talk to us Jazz? I wouldn't if I'd been treated the way she was and she might not believe us even if she does, what then?"

I shrugged,

"Either way, she's coming with us. If I have to knock her out to do it then so be it. It's far too dangerous for her out here unprotected."

I found I was eager to see Bella again myself and not only to protect her from the Romanians although like Emmett I doubted she would welcome us with any warmth. As long as she was at home or we could discover where she might be then she would be safe and there was no reason to suspect she knew she was in any danger and had gone into hiding.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

 **Bella**

I had gone straight home and packed a bag then wrote a note for Renee and Phil so they wouldn't worry. I had three more days off so I wouldn't be missed at work yet and told them that I was going to stay with a friend and would ring to let them know when I'd be back.

I still wasn't sure where to go, where would be safe from vampires? I could go anywhere and once I gassed up the car I headed out of Jacksonville going north for no other reason that I would run out of country too quickly if I continued south and something told me that going towards Mexico wasn't a good idea either, crossing the border was dangerous, it would leave a paper trail that could be followed.

I still had no idea who the "he" Alice had referred to was but I hoped he appeared before any evil befell me. Was this all because I had been associated with the Cullens? Were the rest of them in danger too? If there was a war then they must have chosen a side but who were the antagonists? The Volturi must be one I assumed but who had the strength and courage to make war against them? I remembered Jane and Alec, how could anyone hope to overcome those two and their frightening gifts?

I eventually stopped as the light began to fade and booked in at a small motel close to the road. It was stupid but I felt I stood a better chance of escaping from any attackers if I were close to the highway. Vampires could outrun a car so it wasn't sensible but it was all I could do, keep running from pursuers I wouldn't even recognise if I saw them. I was awake most of the night listening for footsteps outside my door, or car headlights pulling into the motel parking lot but it was quiet, only broken by the low hum of cars on the freeway which eventually lulled me to sleep.

The next morning I had a hurried breakfast in the café attached to the motel then drove on taking a route based only on feelings but avoiding the small roads that could be blocked by someone looking to kidnap or kill me. It was funny, I had thought once Edward left that I would never have any contact with the vampire world again, or that of the guardians, yet here I was running for my life after a warning from my one-time best friend and vampire Alice Cullen. If there was a war between vampires then maybe Jake was involved, it would affect the guardians as well, surely?

 **Jasper**

As we pulled up outside Bella's house I got the feeling we were already too late, that she had gone and sure enough when I finally got to speak to her mom, introducing myself as a friend from Forks, I learned she had left two days ago to stay with a friend.

"I'm sorry, I can't tell you any more than that but I think she's due back tomorrow sometime if you are staying in Jacksonville."

I thanked her and said I'd call back the following day although I doubted Bella would be back. Her mom didn't seem to know where she had gone or which friend she was staying with so I doubted it had been a planned visit. She was worried about her daughter and I knew somehow that Bella knew she was in danger.

"How though Jazz? You think she has contact with other vampires?"

"I don't know Emmett but it sounds like she's running and we have to find her before one of the bounty hunters do."

"How do we know where she's gone Jazz? She could have gone anywhere, besides if she knows then maybe she's already being protected by a vampire."

I shook my head doubting Bella would have anything to do with our kind after the way she had been treated sand very few vampires had contact with humans.

I was about to agree with him that it was a hopeless task trying to trace her when I felt something and I knew I could find Bella if I followed my intuition.

"She's headed north."

As I turned the car around and headed out of town Emmett stared at me.

"What makes you think that?"

I shrugged,

"I don't know Emmett but something tells me she's headed north and, for now at least, she's free of a tail.

I could see the scepticism on his face but I couldn't explain how I knew, just that I did.

In the middle of the night, I pulled up outside a motel just off the highway.

"She was here Emmett. She stayed overnight here and carried on north the next morning. We're not that far behind her which shows she isn't panicking, she's going to keep moving but she's not fleeing mindlessly."

"What I don't understand is why we haven't heard anything from Alice, Jazz. I mean I know she left, but surely she would still warn us of trouble, it's not like her. Don't you feel anything?"

"No, Alice and I parted as friends, no more. I don't feel anything, no pull, nothing Em."

He got a call in the early hours of the morning from Rose with the first bit of bad news. Eleazar and Carmen had been taken by the Romanians who also now had the girls. All had been snatched between their home and the airport. It was my theory that the girls had been taken to put more pressure on Eleazar to work for them. If they killed Carmen they would lose him but the girls were different, more expendable.

"Rose says Peter and Charlotte arrived safely although he is extremely pissed that you didn't wait for him. He wanted to follow on but Carlisle persuaded him to stay and work on a safe place for us all to hide."

That made sense, we needed a bolt hole, somewhere we could defend so we could build up some kind of resistance force to take on the Romanians.

I found the second motel Bella had used and checked with the Manager to ensure I wasn't being led astray. He took a look at the photograph of Bella I had borrowed from Edward and he recognised her as renting a room the night before. She seemed to be moving on a whim not planned which was safer too, her intentions couldn't be anticipated so easily but I wanted to catch up with her today which meant watching carefully as we went, she usually stopped once dusk fell and rented a room. Maybe she felt more vulnerable on the road in the dark.

We knew from her mom what model car she was driving and I didn't think she could afford to dump it and rent another. The motels she used were cheap ones and that was to allow her to keep moving for longer. She understood that movement was the safer option but eventually she would be forced to stop and that's when she would be in the most danger.

I could feel we were getting close and pushed the rental car to its limit then Emmett called out,

"We just passed Bella's car in that motel parking lot. You need to turn around Jazz."

It was three in the morning and the lights were out in all the rooms as far as we could see. Knocking on Bella's door at this late hour would only serve to panic her, if we could discover which was hers as the parking slots were not right outside the individual rooms, so we decided to wait for morning, as long as we were watching over her she would be safe although what I really wanted was to go straight to her and reassure her she was now safe.

Sitting in the car would make the manager suspicious and we didn't want any trouble so I went in and rented a room taking the opportunity to check on the number of Bella's. Fate smiled on us as the manager handed me the key to the room to the left of hers.

We left the car and moved into the room listening to see if we could hear anything from Bella's. Although the light was out in her room we could hear the sounds of someone moving around restlessly, it seemed Bella was only too aware of the danger she was in but I still didn't understand how.

Emmett glanced at me,

"She's awake. Maybe we should let her know we're here, slip a note under her door so as not to scare her. We can give her a phone number so she can check it is us."

It sounded a good idea and at least it wouldn't scare her so much so I wrote a quick note and then slipped it under her door and went back to our room to wait.

The sound of running water told us she hadn't seen the note yet but was taking a shower so we might be waiting longer than we had anticipated. It took a little while to realise the water wasn't hitting anything before it reached the shower tray, she wasn't taking a shower at all, she'd merely used it to distract us while she fled. When I told Emmett what I suspected he forced her door lock and glanced in.

"Yeah, she's gone but her bag and the car are still here so she can't have gone far Jazz."

"No, just far enough to hitch a ride maybe or run for it. She didn't believe it was us, she really is spooked. Come on, we'd better try to track her down before someone else does."


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

 **Bella**

I was sitting in the dark when I heard something, a quiet rustle and looked over to the door just in time to see a piece of paper appear from the outside. I tensed, was this some kind of trick to lure me outside? I was so scared that sleep had eluded me altogether and I knew I wouldn't be able to go much further before I fell asleep at the wheel but I was too scared to stop running. I crept over and picked it up hearing the click as the door next to mine shut softly, they were that close? No wonder I couldn't sleep!

I opened it but I didn't recognise the writing. If I were to believe what I read then Jasper and Emmett were waiting for me next door. Did they really think I was that stupid? If anyone were to come for me it would be Edward and he'd told me what he thought of me very clearly before he left. No, this was the evil Alice had spoken of and I wasn't ready to give in, not just yet.

I turned the shower on full and leaving everything behind but my purse I eased the bathroom window open and slithered out making for the trees on the far side of the parking lot. Once I made the shelter of them I turned to make sure I wasn't being followed then toyed with the idea of running but I knew I couldn't outrun a vampire and in the dark, I'd probably break a leg.

There was a truck filling up at the service station which gave me an idea, I could maybe hitch a ride with the driver. I started forward only to freeze as the door next to mine opened and two figures emerged. At first, I thought they were Volturi, the huge one looked like Felix but then a truck's headlights washed over their faces and I almost cried with relief as I recognised Jasper and Emmett, just as the note had said.

I could see the way they were looking that they expected me to have tried to hitch a ride in the truck that was about to pull away so I ran out of the trees and called to them. It was quite a distance and with the road noise another human wouldn't have heard but both heads whipped around and seeing me running towards them both broke into smiles.

In seconds I found myself in Emmett's arms and feeling safe again at last while Jasper looked at me, his eyes sparkling with amusement.

"You led us a merry chase, Bella. How did you know you were in danger when we only just found out?"

"Alice, I saw Alice, but I think something happened to her. She told me there was evil in charge of your world and that I should run and hide. She knew, though, she knew you'd find me, she told me you would."

 **Jasper**

I didn't understand, why would Alice risk her life to warn Bella? They had been friends yes but I was under the impression Alice had kept away since she left us and if she had known Bella was in danger why hadn't she told us? We could have come for Bella and she could have then hidden. She must have known she was being hunted, her gift alone made her valuable to the Romanians. When Emmett finally let Bella go she grabbed my hands and I felt a tingling sensation, like an electric shock.

"What's going on Jasper? I've been so scared yet I don't know why everything seems to have changed."

Keeping one hand in mine I led her back to her room and put her bag on the bed.

"You pack while I talk. Em, let the others know we have Bella and arrange a flight back."

He nodded and wandered outside while I explained to Bella what had happened.

"The Volturi were defeated? But how? They had all the gifts, Alec could have stopped an army."

"They knew that they've been planning this for a long time. They knew surprise was their only hope and it worked, Alec didn't get warning enough to build up his gift and Jane was overwhelmed by numbers as far as we can tell. The important thing is that the Romanians are now in control and they are acting fast to stop any possible rebellions. There's a list going around, a list of names with rewards posted at the side of each. The Romanians want anyone who could be a threat either on their side or dead."

"Are the Volturi all dead?"

"No, some escaped, Aro, Caius, and Marcus, some of the guard and Aro's wife although I don't think Caius will survive with Athenadora dead. They are holed up in Greece, their spiritual home, and I wouldn't mind betting it has plenty of defences. They know the Romanians will be keen to finish them off."

Once she finished packing I led her over to our car,

"What about mine? I can't just leave it here. I have to tell Renee something or she'll have the police out looking for me and what about Charlie?"

"I'll arrange something but please Bella, we need to leave now."

Emmett came back in,

"More bad news Jazz. The Romanians have launched an attack on the Fraternidad, Antonio is dead along with most of the others."

"Figures, they mean business this time and they've learned from their mistakes. It's going to be a bloodbath and not just for our kind."

"The Romanians are human hunters you mean?"

"More than that Bella, Stefan and Vladimir have no thought for humans, they see them as cattle to be slaughtered as necessary and they won't worry about keeping to the shadows."

Bella went very quiet, the news had shocked her and I thought she understood this could mean the end for mankind as she knew it. The Romanians would enslave them eventually if we didn't stop them. She turned to me solemn beneath the fear,

"Are you going to fight to put the Volturi back in power?"

"Yes, they may not be whiter than white but their ways worked, they allowed us all to live in comparative peace."

I hadn't realised I was still holding her hand and dropped it self-consciously to take the driver's seat.

Emmett followed us in Bella's car to the airport leaving it in the long term car parking.

"No one is going to question it for some time. I paid for three months, told the guy I was trekking across Europe. I think he thought I was mad but the extra I handed him soon stopped any questions. Carlisle rang while we were driving, he thinks a flight is too dangerous, Bella could be traced and the airport is a bottleneck. He said to drive and meet him where we camped two summers ago."

So, Carlisle feared his communications might be overheard, the campsite was in Baton Rouge which gave us easy access to the swamps of Mississippi if we were discovered.

However, it was quite a drive from Raleigh North Carolina to Baton Rouge with plenty of opportunities to try an ambush. We decided the best thing would be for Emmett to drive as he was less well known than me and Bella would stay out of sight in the back behind tinted windows.

Bella was silent for a while thinking about what I had said I assumed. She didn't appear to be as scared any longer and that made me feel better, she trusted us despite what we had done to her in the past.

"I didn't believe your note when I read it was you and Emmett who had come for me. Crazy as it may seem I thought if anyone came to keep me safe it would be Edward. I guess I should have known better."

The thought that Bella was still thinking of Edward hurt me in a way I didn't really understand but then she continued,

"Actually, I'm glad he didn't because I would probably have thrown something at him. That bastard…"

Emmett and I exchanged a grin at this, it seemed perhaps Edward wasn't going to find his ex-girlfriend quite as pleased to see him as he hoped.

"He did want to come but we decided it was too dangerous."

She stared at Emmett as if he just spoken in Japanese,

"He wanted to? After everything he said to me? Then I guess he's as crazy as he is stupid."

Emmett wriggled in his seat before speaking again and I knew he felt uncomfortable at the subject he was about to bring up but felt it had to be said.

"Bella, I want to apologise for the way we left you, that must have hurt."

"It did but I got over it, besides it didn't hurt nearly as much as the things Edward said before you left."

We exchanged another look, what exactly had Edward said to her?

"We did wonder if you would come with us actually, after all, that happened."

She looked at the back of Emmett's head as she answered me,

"I guess when you're in danger you'll grab anything that holds out hope of safety."

I winced, that had hurt, and she must have noticed because she turned to look at me then.

"Sorry, that was unfair. I don't hold anyone responsible for your leaving except myself. It's just the way you went that hurt. You think I blame you for Edward leaving me don't you? I hadn't thought of that, but you're wrong. I know the truth, I know you weren't going to attack me and I'm amazed Edward misinterpreted your actions so badly. Or did what happened fall neatly in with his plan?"

"What plan?"

"He didn't tell you why he left me? He must have said something but by the look of it obviously not the truth."

As we listened in growing horror and outrage Bella told us what Edward had said to her before he left and she knew it word for word, that's how much it had hurt her. His words were branded in her memory and still hurt, even after all this time.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

 **Stefan Romania**

Things had gone so smoothly we were seated on our thrones before we had time to really think about it. For centuries we had planned, collected gifted vampires and fighters secretly, watched for humans with gifts that might be useful and taken them to a secret location where they were changed and tested. Those who proved useful were kept, the rest destroyed.

There was no point in hanging on to soldiers, newborns would be useful enough when it came to the final battle. We had made our shopping list, noting all the gifted vampires who could be useful to us and only marking off those who would never work with us. That covered quite a few as the Volturi had the most powerful and chances were that they would be killed during the coup.

It wasn't until we were almost ready to launch our rebellion that we heard of the human girl, the one who had been tied up with the Cullens, the one who had a gift that could prove exceedingly interesting and useful. We sent scouts out to look for her along with some of the others on our wanted list but we couldn't wait any longer without fear of someone betraying our intentions.

It had been wonderful to see the proud Volturi fleeing from our forces, the twins dying on their pyre along with Chelsea who would have been a great asset if she could have been trusted. We reduced their citadel to rubble and sent soldiers to sift through it for any valuables including computer hard drives then took everything back to the headquarters of the new rulers of the vampire world, us, and set about ensuring that everyone knew we meant business.

No longer would rebel's be spared or killed quietly and in secret. The few Volturi guards that we captured alive were executed publicly, their bodies chopped into small pieces and sent as warnings to those who had allied themselves with Aro and his brothers. The one surprise was that Marcus did not join us once free of Chelsea's gift, instead, he remained at Aro's side. Still, we did get Caius mate, fortunately, and that would render him almost useless to Aro. It was one less enemy to worry about and he had been the strategist among the brothers.

Vladimir and I now had to decide where to turn our attention next. The Fraternidad assumed as we had just beaten our deadliest rivals we would be sitting on our laurels and died as a result. We sent soldiers straight to their stronghold and wiped them out.

The few who escaped were no threat even if they found others to join them and once word spread that we were ruthless and swift with our retribution there would be few who would stand against us.

"We need to gather up the Cullens and Denali's before they disappear into the woods. Eleazar especially, you know how useful his gift will be."

"Yes Vladimir, I know. That's why I sent a trio of soldiers to snatch the Denali's at the airport. They went running straight to Carlisle, just as we thought they would. Once we have Carmen, Eleazar will do exactly as we tell him."

"You are wrong Stefan, he knows we are aware that if we kill his mate he will be useless to us and he will call our bluff, refuse to cooperate. What we need are the girls. If he sees one or two of them executed for his stubbornness he will soon come to heel."

I could see the sense in this and arranged for others to be waiting, once Carmen and Eleazar disappeared it was a certainty that the girls would call on Carlisle for help. He would want the girls safe with him and unless he sent someone to pick them up they could be collected, like Carmen and Eleazar, at the airport, simple!

"What about Carlisle? He may not be much of a threat in himself but he has gifts we need and The Major."

"Vladimir, I think it would be a mistake to write Carlisle off just like that. He may not seem much of a strategist or warrior but he hasn't survived this long and kept his family safe without knowing quite a bit about strategy. Besides, as you said, he has The Major and I don't doubt that his friends will flock to him ready to fight back. It would be wonderful if The Major would join our side but I think it highly unlikely, his honor and allegiance to the Cullen coven will probably force him to stay with them so it may be he has to die."

"So, why bother with the invitations to join us?"

"Vladimir, I'm shocked. It is only polite to offer them the chance to join us peacefully. We have the means here ready to destroy them but why not wait until all the warriors are collected together. It would be so much easier to dispose of them all at once. We need to find the human girl, she is the key to total domination with no more loss of fighting men. Think how easy it will be to rule the world from behind an invincible shield."

"We don't know how strong this shield of hers, this alleged shield I should add, really is. It's just hearsay, Stefan."

"I trust the source and just think how powerful she will be when she becomes a vampire. We've seen gifts blossom and become more powerful in new vampires, why shouldn't hers? Still, she may want a little gentle persuasion which is why I sent some of our soldiers to pick up her parents. Threats work so much faster than trying to coax cooperation from unwilling subjects."

 **Renee**

When Bella didn't come back or call I began to worry, it wasn't like her to just go off with no proper explanation and none of her friends had heard from her either. I held off calling Charlie as long as I possibly could because he would blame me for whatever might have happened. As it was there was little I could tell him, just that she had said she would be staying with a friend but no one had seen or heard from her. When he suggested I contact the police I burst out laughing which, of course, only made matters worse.

"Really Charlie! She's all grown up now and if I did ring them what could they do? She went off of her own free will leaving a note behind."

He didn't like it but he had to accept I was right. When I rang off I wondered if he might ring the Jacksonville police to make enquiries and when two men turned up at my door that evening I could guess the answer to that question.

I opened the door as the taller of the two men knocked loudly for the second time.

"Mrs Dwyer? Bella Swan's mother?"

My heart sank, had something happened to my daughter after all?

"We'd like you to come with us now, please."

I nodded and went into the bedroom to get my bag but as I did so something occurred to me. They hadn't announced themselves as police officers, neither had they shown any form of identification and both looked slightly odd. I'd never seen a Jacksonville cop with such white skin yet both those standing in my lounge were white as flour. Phil had a pistol he kept under the bed and I pulled it out but as I stood up I found they had followed me into the bedroom and stood gazing at the pistol.

"Show me some identification or get the hell out of my house."

They both smiled as if having a pistol aimed at them was in some way amusing.

"Put it down before you get hurt. If you want to see your daughter again you'd better come with us now."

I'd seen thugs like these before, they weren't doing this for Bella's sake, they just wanted me in order to force her to do something and I wasn't playing along. If I had to, I'd shoot them both, and then ring the real police to come and pick them up. Charlie would soon find out what was going on, he'd track Bella down and get her back safely once he had a lead and these two would give him that lead.

 **Stefan Romania**

When the call came I was furious, I had expected a clean pick up, after all, she was a human, how difficult could the task be? Yet, they had managed to bungle badly and lose one important lever.

"What happened?"

"She came at us with a gun, she didn't look that bright but something gave us away."

"A gun? So what? If she had shot you it wouldn't have mattered."

"She did but the bullet ricocheted off a silver photograph frame and hit her in the head. She was dead before she hit the floor or we would have changed her and brought her back with us."

"Well, she's of no use now, is she?"

"No, we left the body, no one saw us. What do you want us to do now?"

"Having made such a mess of a simple assignment I'm tempted to call you back but time is of the essence and you are the best placed to get the next task done, only this time, do not fail me. If you do then I suggest you dig a deep hole and get into it because when I get my hands on you I will rip you into tiny pieces and barbecue them. Understood?"

"Understood."

"Then find your way to Forks Washington and get Chief Swan, the girl's father. He's the Chief of Police so be careful how you collect him."

I put the phone down with a sigh, Vladimir had voiced doubts about their competence but I had ignored him and now we were down one useful lever. Next time I would pay more attention to my partner.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight**

 **Bella**

It was strange being together with Jasper and Emmett again after so long thinking I would never see them again. Of course, whenever I thought of the Cullens it was mainly Edward who filled my mind and they were black thoughts. His words had really hurt me, I thought they had broken my heart at first but I was more resilient than I thought and I'd pulled through with the help of Jake and then my mom and Phil.

To discover that I was now on a wanted list written up by the new rulers of the vampire world was quite a shock and when Jasper explained that the gift I had of blocking my thoughts from Edward was what they wanted I almost laughed until I saw he was deadly serious. He explained that the Romanians had no idea how powerful my gift really was but that it could possibly become a powerful shield if I became a vampire.

I was stunned, I had never really thought much about Edward's inability to read my thoughts, just that it had been something of a relief at times. I had wanted to become a vampire when I thought he loved me and he was so set against the idea but now…...would I be given a choice if I were captured by the Romanians?

Both Emmett and Jasper were so kind to me on the journey, remembering to stop so I could use the restrooms without me having to ask them and for meals. I felt safe with one of them constantly at my side. If the car needed gas one would go with me, while the other filled up, and sit chatting about nothing in particular nursing coffee they would never touch. Emmett didn't say anything about leaving me after our first meeting but Jasper did. He told me that Emmett had fought hard to stay or at least be allowed to say goodbye.

"He felt leaving the hardest of us all Bella, he really missed you."

I thought it was good of Jasper to defend his brother.

"I missed him too, I missed all of you, even though I felt angry and deserted."

"I don't know if it will make any difference but Edward regrets leaving you. He's been talking about coming to find you for some time now."

It felt odd, Jasper almost defending Edward, but I found despite anything he had to say the bitterness against my former boyfriend stayed like a lump of acid in my chest. I didn't want anything to do with Edward ever again but I would have no choice if I wanted to be safe if I wanted to be close to the family again and I realized just how much I had missed their friendship, their trust in me.

"Well, he's going to be really disappointed then because I'd rather date a skunk than go anywhere near him again."

Emmett's laughter rocked the car springs and even Jasper grinned slightly at that.

I slept in the back seat of the car with their jackets pulled over me but I found myself spending my time watching Jasper as he took over the driving once it got dark. I already knew all the Cullens were good looking, Edward had explained it was all part of their vampire makeup, a way to lure unsuspecting humans to them but the more I watched Jasper the more fascinating and attractive I found him. Our eyes met a few times in the rear view mirror and I felt my heart begin to speed up, what was happening to me? Was this just a natural reaction to being safe again? A feeling of gratitude? I wanted to say sure but I didn't think so. I'd known him before and he never had this effect on me but then I had been focused on Edward in those days and he had been in a relationship with Alice. I had thought Edward the most handsome and intelligent man in the world, I would have crawled across broken glass to get to him and then…...it only took a few words to shatter my dream and now I couldn't think of him without wanting to scratch his eyes out.

I thought about Alice, she had been with Jasper when I knew the Cullens and Edward had always warned me how unstable his "brother" was. He actually told me it was only Alice's influence that kept him from reverting to the monster he had once been. So we hadn't had much to do with each other until that night in Phoenix when I had been alone with him and he told me I was worth fighting for. From that day on I began to suspect anything Edward told me about his "brother".

I never felt uneasy with him around, I knew he would fight for me, and that's why I had never believed he had tried to attack me at my party. I think one thing that really angered me was Edward's use of Jasper's actions to justify him abandoning me instead of coming straight out with his real reasons. They had only come to light when I defended Jasper against his accusations and now here I was with the one man I would trust with my life. It was strange how things change, people change, and suddenly you see the reality behind the masks people wear.

 **Jasper**

After dark I took the wheel to give myself something to do, there was a strange atmosphere in the car, it had changed gradually and I found myself concentrating as much on Bella in the back seat as the road ahead. I had thought about her from time to time after we left, guilt kept her in my mind or so I had thought, until I saw her again that is. She had matured, there was a wariness in her look these days that had not been there before and I guessed that Edward and to a lesser degree, the rest of us had put it there.

When she told me what Edward had actually said to her, his reasons for leaving Forks I was astounded. He had been so hurt, so desperate after we left that I had thought he realized immediately that he had been a fool to leave the girl he was in love with on moral grounds, but now I suspected it was his guilt that tormented him.

If he thought he was going to be allowed to just stroll back into her life and pick up where they left off he was very much mistaken. Words can be weapons, he should know that, and his words had cut Bella's heart in two. I really believed she hated him now and he would never be allowed close again. There was something else, a feeling of peace, of safety. Bella felt she was safe now and I suspected she was feeling that way because of my presence although I couldn't be sure. It was just the way she looked at me, like now when she thought I was concentrating on the road ahead. She was studying me and there was the faintest hint of a smile on her lips, she felt content.

My own feelings for her were a whirling mixture that just wouldn't calm down. Ever since the run to Phoenix when Alice and I had been entrusted with Bella's safety I had felt something for this fragile human. I knew I would always be there to keep her safe if she needed me, something would draw me to her as if she were in some way my responsibility. Alice had known, just as she always knew, and she had told Bella as much without naming me. I wondered when she left if it was really because of my behaviour at Bella's party, Alice never criticised me for any of my weaknesses and now I knew the truth. She had known Bella would need protection and that I was the one who would and could keep her safe. Where this might lead I wasn't prepared to speculate yet but it would be interesting to hear what she had to say to Edward and how she reacted to me once we were back among the family.

Emmett, who had been talking quietly to Rosalie on the phone now turned to me.

"Things aren't good Jazz. Carlisle is getting news in from friends all over. The Romanians are moving in on anyone they don't trust and those they can't persuade to join them they are killing. Alistair has gone underground but he knows of at least two others in England who have been killed. Garrett is making his way to us but there are bounty hunters crawling all over the place and it's getting very dangerous. I'll be happier once we get back to the others."

I nodded, it was only what I would have done in their place, kill the opposition before it had time to collect together and start a revolt against me. Stefan and Vladimir had all this planned out and people in place before they set a foot outside their stronghold. Defeating them wasn't going to be easy if it were even possible. For now, the most important thing was staying out of sight and alive.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine**

 **Bella**

When Emmett's phone rang again it woke me with a start and from his expression and Jaspers tightened grip on the steering wheel I knew it was more bad news. I waited as patiently as I could while Emmett spoke low to whoever was on the other end then shut his phone and threw it on the dashboard.

"You were right Jazz, they aren't wasting any time. I never thought they'd get Garrett though and he was almost safe."

"They can't afford to let any warriors survive that aren't fighting for them. That's why Darius went underground so quickly, he'll be high on their list of wanted alive."

"Like you?"

"Like me and Peter and anyone else they know is good in battle. I wouldn't be surprised if they haven't got Maria working with them."

I hadn't thought about that, Edward had told me a little of Jasper's history, mainly to ensure I stayed well away from him, but enough to understand how evil she was and the thought that Jasper might be forced to meet her again horrified me.

He turned with a reassuring smile and I realised he had felt my fear and thought I was afraid for myself and I couldn't tell him the truth so I just smiled back.

"There's no need to worry Bella, we're almost there and once we get into the swamps the Romanians will find it almost impossible to find us."

"Are sure about that Jazz?"

He glanced warningly at Emmett who subsided realising he had said the wrong thing but I would rather know the truth than be told lies to make me feel better. Before I could say so Jasper turned again,

"Sorry Bella but it's probably better you know the truth. If the Romanians want us badly enough and it seems they do then it will be almost impossible to hide from them indefinitely."

"Then I guess we have no choice but to fight."

My words seem to have stunned both of them into silence and I smiled inwardly, did they really think I was going to run and hide in fear for the rest of my life?

"I think you might have more immediate problems Bella, we're here and it looks like you have a reception committee."

 **Jasper**

As Emmett said the words and Bella peered out leaning close to my shoulder I felt jealousy rising in my chest and cursed. Despite what she had said about Edward before, seeing him in the flesh might rekindle all the old feelings she had for him and then what would I do? I knew my feelings for Bella were real but I had no idea how she felt about any of us despite the warm welcome Emmett and I received.

After all, we had turned up to save her so relief and a feeling of safety could be responsible for that. I tried to feel Bella's emotions but they were so mixed up and crowded by Emmett's relief at seeing Rosalie safe plus the emotions of everyone else made it impossible so I would just have to wait and see like everyone else.

Edward came running up to the car and wrenched the door open, relief visible on his face and I tensed as he almost pulled Bella from her seat and into his arms. Carlisle and the others hung back waiting to see how Bella would react to Edward's greeting.

I heard a crack and a hiss of pain and saw Edward drop Bella and take a few steps back his eyes wide with shock while Bella stood, her face a mask of hatred and her cell phone splintered in her hand where she had used it as a weapon to hit him with. Emmett and I exchanged a look, both smiling before rearranging our faces into masks of impassivity as we waited to hear what came next.

 **Bella**

Bearing in mind what Jasper and Emmett had said about Edward coming to find me I anticipated his actions when we arrived and kept my cell phone in my fist. So, when he pulled me from the car and into a bear hug I swung my arm and hit him across the face with the phone.

The look on his face was hilarious, he just couldn't believe I would strike him. Everyone else looked shocked although I detected a flash of mirth between Emmett and Jasper. However, Edward wasn't one to give up easily and brushing the shattered plastic and electronics from his chest he smiled at me.

"I guess I deserved that Bella. I apologise for the lame excuses I used, I was just worried about your safety but I guess I should have had more faith in Jasper."

"You should have had more faith in everyone Edward and just because you are apologising doesn't make things right. I never wanted to see you again but the fates decree otherwise so I guess I'm stuck with your presence but don't ever make the mistake of thinking I have forgiven you, or that I want anything to do with you because I'll tell you loud and clear right now, I DON'T."

Stepping past him I went to greet Carlisle, Esme, and Rosalie who had hung back looking unsure.

"Thank you for thinking of my safety Carlisle. It seems I may owe my life to you and the guys."

He held out his hand and after a moment's hesitation I took it shaking it briefly before letting go once more and I know he was aware that despite their help, I didn't feel the way I had once about them. Esme invited me into the motel room they had rented where she had laid out some food and drink and handed me a sheet of paper while I ate acutely aware of all eyes on me.

"I made this because I didn't know how much you had with you. I don't know if the boys told you but we will be going into the swamps where it's safer and you will need some supplies."

I sat on the bed chewing a tuna salad sandwich and reading the elegant script. I had some of the things but others I wouldn't have thought of until it was too late,

"I have some things but not all, I had no idea what was happening when I left, Alice didn't tell me much."

Esme sat down beside me her eyes shining with unshed tears,

"Emmett tells us you think she is dead. Are you sure?"

I shook my head swallowing down a mouthful so I could answer her properly,

"No I can't be sure but I heard a cry and then I saw strange purple smoke in the air."

She gave a cry of pain and ran to Carlisle who took her in his arms to comfort her while Edward opened his mouth again.

"They must have suspected she would never join them but surely she could have lied, she didn't have to die. like that. What I don't get is why she didn't warn us I could have gone to fetch Bella, she's my responsibility after all."

I shook my head in disbelief, he really was stupid if he didn't get my message, I thought I had been clear enough but obviously not.

"Bella, I'm sure you want to discuss what happened in Forks, why don't we take a walk? I can explain things to you."

I turned to Jasper,

"I would like some fresh air and to stretch my muscles after that ride, would you mind accompanying me?"

He smiled and my breath caught in my chest, why had I never realised how handsome he was, much more than Edward who at the moment was looking like a petulant child.

"Of course."

He held out his arm and with all eyes on us we walked out of the room into the peace and relaxation of the night air.

I thought Edward might follow us but I heard no footsteps behind and began to relax, still holding onto Jasper's arm. He didn't seem to mind and suddenly I felt guilty for talking about Alice as I had,

"I didn't mean to be so blunt, I'm sorry if I hurt you. What happened between you and Alice? I thought you were perfect together."

"We thought so too for a long while but Alice saw something although she wouldn't say what, not to me anyway. After we left Forks things changed, she was restless and then one day she told me that her place was no longer here with me. I thought she blamed me for the attack on you but it wasn't that, we didn't argue or anything, we parted as friends but I never heard from her again and I guess now I never will."

"She knew you'd come for me, to keep me safe."

"It would seem so, I think Alice saw lots of things she didn't talk about."

There was a hidden meaning in his words but I wasn't sure I was ready to hear them or him tell me so we went on in silence for a few minutes, just like a couple on an evening stroll.

"I'm glad it was you who came."

"Me too Bella although I don't think Edward sees things quite the same."

"To hell with Edward, as far as I am concerned Edward is just another of the Cullens."

"I'm not sure you are ready to forgive any of us yet Bella and I'm not sure we deserve your forgiveness anyway."

I turned to him stopping suddenly,

"I never blamed you for the family leaving, I know what you did and why and if there is anyone I trust it's you."


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten**

 **Carlisle**

Well, I hadn't expected things to go smoothly with Bella coming back into our lives but I had more important things to worry about than Edwards wounded pride. If he had actually thought about it rationally he would have expected Bella to be annoyed with him but I thought there was more behind her hostility than just the fact we had left her without a word of goodbye.

It seemed Edward hadn't told us everything that occurred at their last meeting and at the moment I wasn't interested in finding out. I had heard from Aro that Greece was no longer safe for the remains of the Volturi, they were going to join us in the swamps of Louisiana. I just hoped we would be safe there for a while. One other piece of news came through while Bella was out cooling down with Jasper, and it concerned her.

When she and Jasper reappeared half an hour later she looked more relaxed and I was sorry I would have to ruin that for her but she had a right to know what had happened. Edward had begged me to let him break the news but for now, she could do without any mind games he might try with his ex-girlfriend. Jasper, of course, felt the change in mood and remained at Bella's side.

"Bella, you might want to sit down, I'm afraid I have some bad news to give you."

She tensed but shook her head, her hand creeping to clasp Jasper's for support.

"What is it, Carlisle?"

"We think the Romanians may have sent someone to kidnap your mother."

She gasped but remained at Jasper's side,

"They are going to threaten her unless I join them?"

"I think that may have been their plan but something went wrong, I'm afraid your mother is dead. Your stepfather found her when he came home from work, she'd been shot in the head."

Jasper tensed,

"Shot? That wasn't the work of vampires."

"It seems she may have become suspicious Jasper, the gun was registered to Phil, her husband. The shot that killed her was a ricochet. The police think she fired at her attackers and the bullet ricocheted off a silver frame and hit her in the head, killing her instantly."

 **Jasper**

I cursed the Romanians for the pain they brought Bella but for now, she needed me at her side, her hand was clasping mine so tightly I could really feel it. I led her to the bed and sat down beside her putting an arm around her shoulder and she leaned into me, tears beginning to trickle down her face.

"Better she died like that than be kidnapped and terrified by the Romanians, they would have killed her in the end anyway. What about my dad? And Phil?"

"If they had wanted Phil they would have waited for him to get home but your father is another matter."

She looked at me in understanding, the vampires would be looking to snatch Charlie too.

"We thought of that and tried to reach him but there was no answer at home or work and they told us he was fishing so he may not have his cell phone switched on."

"So, what do we do Carlisle?"

He smiled at her reassuringly,

"As soon as we heard that Emmett and Rosalie set off to Forks to pick him up."

"But won't that put them in danger too?"

Of course, she was right it would but I knew both my brother and sister felt guilty the way they had treated Bella and this was one way of trying to atone but there was something neither Carlisle nor anyone else had understood.

"I don't think we are in such immediate danger. Think about it Carlisle. The Romanians couldn't allow too many in on their secret without risking a leak. I think they had certain people under observation but most of their men would have been involved in Italy.

It takes time to move men around the globe, even vampires, and they have a lot on their list, which is why they are offering bounties. It will be some time before they build up enough of an army to be a real threat to everyone who objects to their coup. So, I doubt the vampires going after Charlie hung around if he wasn't there, they would have other tasks too. It might be that they are sent back now the news about Renee is out but Stefan's forces are stretched to their limits right now."

 **Carlisle**

What Jasper said made sense, the danger was probably not as immediate as we had thought however by coming to join us the remnants of the Volturi would make us a much bigger target.

"We should move out quickly before the Romanians realise that Aro and his group are going to join us. Do you think we will be safe in the swamps Jasper?"

"The swamps are a good bet Carlisle, I told you that already. It's easy to see people coming at you in an empty space and it gives us room to manoeuvre."

Peter walked in then looking annoyed that I hadn't believed him straight off and I really couldn't give a good reason, I just found him an abrasive personality but he was a very good fighter, one of the best and a man we needed on side if we were to stand any chance of survival let alone beating the Romanians in time.

He and Jasper greeted each other like long-lost brothers but then in a way that's what they were. He and Jasper had fought together and lived together in Maria's hell hole of a camp. Peter was the one who had persuaded Jasper to leave her and the two trusted each other completely. As he introduced Bella to Peter and his wife I went outside with Edward,

"We should leave in an hour. Did you get everything on Esme's list?"

"Yes, but I should be the one comforting Bella, not Jasper. It's not fair Carlisle."

"Whatever really happened between you two finished the relationship as far as Bella was concerned, I think you will have to accept that son. We can't afford to fight amongst ourselves, not while there is a far more deadly enemy on or tails."

He didn't like it but he knew I was correct and I saw his shoulder slump in defeat as he rejoined the others in the motel room.

Esme wasn't happy at the thought of moving before Emmett and Rosalie got back but we couldn't afford to wait for them, it was just too dangerous with Aro and his company on their way here. I hadn't told them where we would be, just a clue I thought Marcus might be able to work out before they left Greece.

"δεκαπέντε δύο δεκαπέντε έξι τέσσερις οκτώ ένα ένα έξι σαράντα δύο.y cyfandir tywyll.

Which I was hoping Marcus would translate as the dates of birth and death of Galileo in Greek, which knowing we were in the south east of the USA would have him looking for an observatory, and the dark continent in Welsh, which should lead him to Henry Morton Stanley, the Welsh journalist, and explorer. So, he was looking for some kind of observatory close to a place named Stanley or that of his famous exploration find, Dr. Livingstone.

I was hoping he would find the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory which was 10 minutes from the town of Livingston. It sounded complicated but we were talking about our very lives here and, like Jasper, I thought the Romanians would be concentrating on their most deadly enemies, which meant they would be headed straight for us and looking for any clues along the way.

We loaded up the truck that Emmett had bought cheap off a farmer close by and with Bella and Esme in the cab with Peter driving and the rest of us in the back we headed out towards our new, hopefully, more secure, home. Edward sat next to Jasper and I heard their conversation over the growl of the clapped out engine.

"Bella seems very close to you Jasper. I hope you understand how fragile she is and how much danger she is in?"

"I do."

"I guess you're probably the best able to protect her from what's coming but be careful. If you hurt her…."

Jasper turned cold eyes on him,

"Care to give me some lessons on that? You're the expert after all."

Edward scowled but then nodded,

"Just don't make the same mistakes I did, tell her the truth every time and don't keep secrets or think you know better."

I expected Jasper to have some cutting reply to Edward's words but he just nodded silently and Edward seemed content. I got the feeling he had learned a very painful lesson, I just hoped he remembered it or he would find himself breaking not only another girl's heart but his own again too.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven**

 **Bella**

It seemed like I was living a nightmare, after thinking things were getting better they had crashed again with the knowledge that my mother was dead, a freak accident while trying to protect herself. Even though I knew it was a kinder fate than the Romanians had in mind for her it was still an agonizing blow.

Had they managed to snatch Charlie? Would he be held hostage for my cooperation? I couldn't even think about that, about choosing sides, even if my gift were any better than a party trick, and no one even knew that yet. I had been numb with shock until now but suddenly everything hit me at once, my fear, Alice's death, Renee's death and the fact I was being hunted by the most powerful vampires in the world, and back with the Cullen family, including Edward, someone I had fervently hoped I would never see again.

"Stop, please."

Peter glanced over at me as there came a loud hammering from the back and he pulled up sharply,

"What the fuck is going on?"

My door was pulled open and strong arms carried me over to the grass verge where I hunched over as I was violently sick. I felt too ill to be embarrassed and even when my stomach was empty I still continued to retch. I felt miserable and wiped my mouth with a tissue handed me by my saviour, Jasper of course, who else? Then I turned into his arms lay my head on his chest and began to sob uncontrollably. I have no idea how long it was before I could get control of myself again but Jasper stood patiently holding me, stroking my hair until I was able to straighten up, my eyes red and sore and my nose running. The tissues he had handed me were just a soggy scrunched up mess in my hand and I was grateful when another hand appeared over his shoulder with fresh ones.

"Are you OK Bella?"

It was Esme's voice and sounded gentle and concerned but I couldn't answer her, I knew if I opened my mouth I would start crying again so I just nodded.

"It might be better if Bella rode with me in the fresh air, Esme."

"Of course, I'll ask Charlotte to swap places. I'm so sorry Bella, we should have been more thoughtful, you've had a dreadful time lately but we'll be somewhere safe soon and you can rest."

I nodded again, relieved when Jasper lifted me off my feet and carried me back to the truck, my legs were so weak and wobbly I didn't think I would have made it under my own steam.

Other strong arms took me from him then he jumped up and I was terrified I might open my eyes and find myself in Edward's embrace but I heard Carlisle whisper my name and touch my forehead before I was handed back to Jasper. Safe in his arms, mentally and physically exhausted, I fell into a doze despite the bumpy road. Voices carried on a conversation around me, mainly guessing what the Romanians planned to do next and how safe would we be in the swamps but Jasper was silent and I was more conscious of his nearness than anything else. From time to time I still wept but silently now, thinking of Renee and how brave she had been to try fighting back, I just hoped I would be equally as brave if I had to face the Romanians.

As the day wore on the temperature began to drop and I was aware of a blanket draped over me and then finally the truck stopped, we had gone as far as we could in the vehicle, the rest of the way would be on foot. The very thought of wading through swamps or fighting my way through the vegetation exhausted me and then I heard Edward's voice,

"I'll take her if you like. After all, you'll need your hands free if we run into the enemy."

Before I could cry out or try to refuse I heard Peter's unfamiliar though much welcomed southern drawl, cut in,

"I don't think that's a good idea do you Eddy boy? She's already tried to rearrange your features once. I'll take her Major if she's happy with that."

I opened my eyes to see him looking at me and when our eyes met he winked conspiratorially so I nodded and he lifted me up although I missed the comforting feel of Jasper's body close to mine.

"Right. Now, I usually charge for transporting damsels in distress but just this once I'll make an exception. I warn you though, I'm a huge coward and if we encounter any wildlife with teeth bigger than mine I'll throw you to it and run. Got that?"

I managed a weak smile and nodded although I heard Esme's low exclamation of concern. I didn't want to be treated like I was glass, even if I was fragile right now.

"Right Princess, hold on tight for the ride of a lifetime."

I was grateful for his light humoured words although I then heard Edward tutting behind us and whispering that now wasn't the time for such levity,

"Can't you see how upset Bella is Peter?"

"Yeah, but it was either tell a few jokes to lighten the atmosphere or throw you in the swamp and I knew you wouldn't want that so shut the fuck up before I change my mind."

Edward fell silent then and I was glad he stayed behind us because it gave me a clear view of Jasper who along with Carlisle was beating a path for us through vegetation along a track that only they could see. He turned to check on us from time to time and each time my heart stuttered in time with the pounding in my head. I felt terrible but there was nothing for it but to keep quiet and hope we would be somewhere I could lay down soon.

After about half an hour we came out on the bank of a creek which twisted away into the distance in both directions and realised our way ahead meant travelling across it.

On the far bank was something that I took for a log until it moved silently, slithering into the water.

"Right, if that fucker so much as grins at me you are going in Bella, just remember that."

I giggled weakly at his joke but again Edward showed his disapproval and for a moment I really wished Peter would make good on his threat and throw Edward in with the alligators. Instead, he waded into the water after swinging me onto his shoulders.

"I'll try not to get you too wet, The Major forgot the luxury yacht so I'm afraid it's time for a paddle."

I wondered how much further it was and looked around to see the others following us, uncaring of the cold muddy water or the stench of rotting vegetation but Esme smiled encouragingly.

"Don't worry Bella, it's not much further. Charlotte and I have your things so they won't get wet."

True enough both Esme and Charlotte were weighed down with rucksacks and waterproof bags which they held high above the water which luckily wasn't as deep as I had feared. Of course, the men needed their hands free, just in case our hiding place wasn't as secret as they hoped.

Twenty minutes later we were back on drier ground on a small islet which was covered in twisted trees and bushes. Pushing through these we came upon an old wooden shack with, of all things, a satellite dish set up outside and with it a figure, a young man I had never seen before.

"Darius! I mighta fucking known you'd make yourself at home. Can I get cable on that thing?"

Peter put me down gently on my feet and once he was sure I wasn't going to fall over he went to greet the stranger followed by Carlisle and Charlotte while Edward hovered close by hoping I might need his help but Jasper walked between the two of us and took my hand,

"Come and meet Darius, he's going to be our eyes and ears for the foreseeable future, our communications expert."

I took his hand and went over to say hello when all I really wanted to do was lie down and close my eyes until the thumping in my skull gave up and my stomach stopped doing somersaults.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter Twelve**

 **Charlie**

I always hated it when it came time to pack up my fishing gear and head home even though I loved my job. I found the peace of fishing gave me the opportunity to think, work things out in my head and there was always stuff that needed working out although I had thought wouldn't have to worry about Bella any more.

I had worried when Edward and the Cullens pulled their disappearing trick. I didn't know what had happened and she refused to talk about it but one minute they were love's sweet dreams and the next POW! He was gone and she was a mental and physical wreck.

I swore if I'd come face to face with that boy right then I would have flattened him, law man or no law man.

I had never seen Bella so depressed, hurt, and withdrawn, and if not for Jake I think she might never have pulled herself out of it. Then just when I thought everything was going to be OK, Bella and Jake maybe courting, she threw a spanner in the works by deciding she wanted to go live with Renee and Phil. I missed her but no more than poor Jake who had always been sweet on her and really thought once Cullen had gone that he was in with a chance. Bella wouldn't come back, not even for a short visit so it was back to phone calls, texts, and messages.

Speaking of calls I thought I'd better turn my cell phone back on, just in case my disappearing daughter had decided to let me know where the hell she'd gone off to. It was my one luxury, the only time I turned the damn thing off. I had long ago decided that Andy and Eddie could handle an emergency perfectly well without me and the damn thing ringing would only scare the fish off.

"You could put it on vibrate Chief."

I didn't even deign to answer that suggestion by Deb's, my efficient dispatcher and mother figure to everyone in the station. My fishing trips were sacred and I wasn't having the damn thing ringing, buzzing, or even vibrating! There was as always a couple of messages waiting but both were from Deb's and both marked URGENT so I rang the station as I packed my rods away,

"Unless the place has burned down or aliens have landed there is no need to mark a message urgent Deb's, I'll be back home in an hour."

I sat down with a thud as I heard Deb's tell me that Renee was dead, shot in the head with Phil's gun, apparently by her own hand although it seemed she had been firing at someone else when the bullet bounced off some metal and caught her in the forehead. There were no clues as to who the person she fired at had been and all a neighbour saw was a dark coloured medium sized car drive off sometime in the afternoon of her death, yesterday.

Then it hit me, Bella! Had she got back? Had she found her mother's dead body? I stuttered out the questions but all Deb's could tell me was that Phil had found Renee and he had no idea where Bella was, only that she had left for a friend's some days ago and still hadn't contacted them or returned. He had the police looking for her now, concerned her disappearance might have something to do with Renee's death.

"I'll make flight arrangements for you Chief, I thought you'd want to fly straight down there. I tried Bella's cell phone too but it's switched off. I didn't know what to say and I didn't think it would be right to leave a message. The ticket will be waiting at the desk when you reach the airport so you've got time to go home and pack. I'll text you the flight details as soon as I have them. Do you want one of us to drive you to Seattle?"

"No, I'll drive myself I think but thanks, Deb's."

I put my phone down and fumbled for my keys in my pocket stopping suddenly as I heard rustling behind me in the bushes.

There had been talk of large wolves seen in the forest close to the river and I wondered if it might be one of them stalking me. I had left my gun in the trunk locker and turned very slowly sighing in relief when I recognised Emmett Cullen standing there, then I remembered what his family had done to my daughter and glared.

"I thought you'd left Forks for good."

He didn't smile and it struck me that I'd never seen him look so serious before.

"I need you to come with me, Chief Swan. I don't know if you've heard the news about your ex-wife but you're in real danger."

"What do you know about Renee's death?"

Now I was suspicious and moved slowly to the trunk of my car eager to arm myself.

He must have been aware I didn't trust him as he put both hands up in a gesture of peace.

"Hey! I'm not the enemy and I think you might feel a little better when I tell you that Bella is safe, she's in hiding with the rest of the family."

"In hiding? You mean this threat or whatever it is affects her too? Is that why she went missing? What the hell is going on Emmett? How did Bella get mixed up with your family again?"

"Listen, Chief Swan, I'll try to answer all your questions but it really isn't safe here, they're probably looking for you and we need to get moving."

I hesitated but he had information I needed and according to him, the family had Bella safe so I had no choice.

"OK, Where are we going? I have a flight booked to Jacksonville but I guess Bella isn't there."

"No, she isn't, Jacksonville isn't safe for either of you."

"What about Phil? Renee's husband?"

"They won't worry about him, he didn't see anything or he'd already be dead and he's no use to them."

"You keep saying them, who are they?"

He looked uneasy as he answered evasively,

"It doesn't really matter at the moment, just making sure you aren't still here when they come looking and that could be any time. Please Chief Swan, we have to move."

"I'd like to speak to Bella, not that I don't believe you but you'll understand my reluctance to take what you say at face value."

He nodded,

"OK, as soon as we are on the move I'll contact her."

"How exactly? She's not answering her cell phone."

"But Carlisle is, and she's with him."

I got into my car but when I started my engine Emmett rapped on the window, and I wound it down.

"Leave your car, we'll go in ours. Yours is too well known Chief."

I looked around,

"I can't leave my car here just like that."

"Sure you can, and once we're outta Forks you can ring the station and get it picked up by one of your guys. It's too dangerous for you to drive outta here Chief."

Sighing I got back out of my car and locked it,

"What about clothes? I need to pack a few things."

"We'll organize anything you need but for now, please."

He gestured to the road where a small compact was waiting with his blonde girlfriend at the wheel.

I slid in the back and she acknowledged me before taking off faster than I liked,

"Be careful, this track is pretty rough."

She turned and smiled briefly but it never reached her eyes which were troubled, whatever was going on, it worried them both. Before I could ask again about Bella I heard Emmett talking to Carlisle and then he handed me his phone.

"Chief Swan, thank you for not making things difficult but you really are in considerable danger. Emmett tells me you want to speak to Bella. She's sleeping at the moment, I think hearing about her mother's death shook her up badly. If you insist I will wake her of course….."

"No, It's OK, I see no reason to disbelieve you, Carlisle, although I am somewhat surprised to hear Bella is with you. Is Edward there too? Or is that a silly question?"

"He is here yes, but I think Bella has made her feelings toward him perfectly clear. It would be better if you could wait for answers to your questions until you reach us here."

I hesitated, even Carlisle sounded concerned, what the hell was going on?

"How about a short version of events?"

"Let's just say that there are some extremely dangerous people who are eager to get their hands on Bella and we are trying to ensure that they do not succeed."

That was good enough for now and I told him so then sat back and closed my eyes wondering just what the hell we had gotten ourselves mixed up in and why a doctor and his family thought they could keep Bella safer than her cop father? A cop father who was willing to trust that doctor too. I had always felt there was more to the Cullens than met the eye and I thought I was close to finding out just how right I had been.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter Thirteen**

 **Stefan Romania**

Vladimir and I were eager to see Eleazar now we had the means to bend him to our will and he was escorted in by two of our most trusted soldiers along with his mate, the delectable Carmen. They looked dishevelled and their eyes were dark with thirst but then it had been some time since they fed last. I stood up courteously and offered my hand but neither took me up on the greeting and I smiled, so they still had some fight left in them. I liked that, it would make the interview more of a challenge.

"Eleazar, Carmen, I apologize for not greeting you sooner but as I am sure you can imagine Vladimir and I have been rather busy. It's not every day we regain control of our world and there are some who do not like the change in ownership. Still, let's concentrate on you for now. Eleazar, I'm sure you know why you have been brought here."

"I do and I will not cooperate with you. No one owns our world, not even you Stefan."

I glanced at my friend who leaned forward in his chair,

"Oh, you are wrong Eleazar, this is our world, it was in the beginning and will be again. The sooner you understand that and come to terms with the fact, the easier things will go for you, and your beautiful mate."

Eleazar heard the implied threat in Vladimir's words, he knew of us and should understand that we would do anything necessary to get what we wanted….anything.

"You have a gift that we need Eleazar. To make the transition as painless as possible we need gifted vampires and that is your job, to find them for us. Vampires or humans, it makes no difference, we will do whatever is necessary to ensure their loyalty just as we will to ensure you are loyal. Threats are so tedious but if you make it necessary then I will demonstrate just what we are prepared to do in order to obtain your help."

I glanced from him to Carmen then back and I could see his mind working, he knew that if we killed his mate we would be killing the golden goose, so what he had to ask himself was what else we had in our hands that he would be loathe to lose.

After a few moments silence, he spoke,

"I do not support the Volturi, I left them many years ago. Is that not enough?"

"Unfortunately not, you see before you left our dear friend Aro you hunted out several very powerful gifts and now we need you to do the same for us, no more, no less."

"And if I do?"

I smiled and lifted my hands,

"Then we can be one happy family. You and your dear mate will be able to live peacefully in the new world you have helped to secure."

"And if not?"

My hands fell and I tried to look sorrowful but it was Vladimir who answered his question and I saw them both wince with each of his words,

"Then your beautiful companions Irina, Tanya, and Kate, will be given to our newborns to train and…. other things. So you see, you hold their continued existences in your hands Eleazar. Could you live with yourself knowing what your refusal will mean for them?"

He exchanged a glance with Carmen before nodding very slightly,

"Very well, I will work for you, but on one condition."

"You are in no position to start making conditions."

He flinched as Vladimir snapped at him but I put up a hand to silence my friend.

"Allow Eleazar to voice his condition Vladimir, it might be something we are happy to grant him."

Vladimir sat back with a grunt of disbelief and I gestured for Eleazar to continue.

"I want Carmen and the girls set free and your guarantee of their continued safety."

I turned to Vladimir with a knowing smile,

"See, we all want the same thing, safety for those we care about."

Turning back to our prisoners I hesitated,

"Your young charges can go free certainly, once you find the first three gifts for us, one for one. Carmen doesn't look as if she wants to be separated from you and who are we to force such a terrible sentence on anyone? Perhaps though she could perform a small service herself. We want the Cullens, or at least Edward and The Major, along with his new mate. If Carmen could persuade them to come here willingly then perhaps we would be prepared to swap them for your freedom. Think about it, we'll meet again tomorrow."

As they turned flanked by their guards I halted them briefly,

"Oh, how remiss of us, you must be terribly thirsty. Can we offer you some sustenance? I'm afraid we don't have any…..animals, but there are willing donors around."

Although I could almost feel their raging thirst myself they both shook their heads and with a shrug I allowed them to leave.

"I'm not sure we should have offered him anything. If we killed one of the girls he would soon get the message that we mean business."

"Vladimir, it's so much easier if he thinks he is working for their safety and Carmen will be desperate to talk Carlisle into helping her. All we have to do is make sure someone is watching her. As soon as she knows where they are, we know too. Besides, do you think he really believed me?"

"Yes, I do, the fool!"

"Then perhaps it's better we keep him close and working hard. We need more gifts Vladimir and Eleazar is the quickest way to collect them."

"Don't you think the Volturi know that, Stefan?"

"Of course, but we got to him first and that's all that matters in the long run. Aro is hardly likely to try snatching him from under our very noses, he doesn't have the manpower to risk losing anyone for that. Besides he still has some gifts, we never found Demetri and Felix and there are others, maybe even some we are not aware of. Strength comes with numbers and the best fighters and gifts. We have the first and some of the second, now it's time to concentrate on the third."

 **Eleazar**

Carmen was quiet on the way back to our room which had no windows or furniture and a heavily barred door with sentries outside.

"Do you think he meant those threats?"

"Yes, my love I do. The Romanians need gifts if they are to hold onto the power they have snatched. Aro will not be hiding somewhere licking his wounds. He will be building up an army to take power back and I fear it will be the most bloody encounter in our long and already violent history."

"I'm not leaving you Eleazar."

"Yes, you are. I want you to be somewhere safe, I don't trust Stefan or Vladimir to keep their word. Find Carlisle and tell him all you have seen and heard."

As I said this I shook my head holding a finger to my lips then began to write with my own venom loaded saliva on the floor.

"Do not look for Carlisle, you would only lead the Romanians to him. Pretend to look and see if you can evade whoever will be watching you. If you can, then go into hiding and stay there. I will find you when this is all over."

Her eyes were full of horror as she shook her head but I just nodded and pulled her close, so long as she was safe I could put up with anything Stefan might throw at me and Aro would eventually wrest control back, probably with Carlisle's help. Then I would be reunited with my beautiful mate, but not until.

We sat together in silence, the closeness being enough as we both knew it could be years if not centuries before we might see each other again. I had never been separated from Carmen since I first set eyes on her and knew it would be torture for both of us but there was no alternative, not if we wanted to survive this nightmare. She would have to trust me to keep the girls safe if that were possible. I doubted Stefan would allow them to leave even if I found him three gifts but I thought he might well keep them alive and safe to use as bargaining chips later if it became necessary. I needed to make myself invaluable to the Romanians but at the same time help Aro to win back our world or I would never be out of this nightmare and neither would any of my friends or my family.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter Fourteen**

 **Bella**

I have no idea how long I slept but once my head hit the pillow I slipped into an exhausted dreamless sleep. When I woke my headache was much better although it hadn't gone completely and the first thing that entered my head was that my mom was dead and possibly my dad too. I sat up shocked as everything came crashing back and found myself wrapped in strong comforting arms.

Then I heard Jasper's voice,

"Hush Bella, it's OK, you're safe for now and we've heard from Emmett and Rosalie, they found your dad and are on their way here."

I felt better hearing that news, Charlie was OK.

"How long before they get here? Will they be safe? Surely whoever is looking for my dad will just follow them here?"

"Peter and Darius have gone to help out. They can't come straight here without what you worried about happening but those two will soon flush out anyone following and make sure they never report back."

I nodded pleased even though I knew what that meant for anyone following them.

Esme appeared then with hot coffee and a bowl of cereal.

"I'm sorry I can't cook you anything hot just yet but until we know we are secure we don't want the scent of food wafting around."

I nodded my understanding wondering about the aroma of coffee but Esme just smiled a little wickedly,

"Maybe I bent the rules just a little but among the scent of rotting vegetation I didn't think a little coffee would be very noticeable and you looked like you needed it."

I didn't answer her, I was too busy eating and drinking, my stomach was empty and I knew I would feel better with something inside me.

"I'll leave you with Esme, Bella. I should check on Darius' equipment while he's gone, see if I can find out what's going on out in the world."

As soon as he left I missed him but a few seconds later Edward appeared although he looked at me warily,

"Could I speak to you for a few minutes Bella? Please."

I was inclined to refuse his request but I was too weary to argue so I just shrugged and he sat down beside me with a decent enough gap that I didn't feel he was invading my personal space which was an improvement.

"I wanted to apologize, for everything. The things I said in Forks, the way I treated you, and the way I assumed you would be pleased to see me when we met again. I've been a bit of a jackass and lost you, I see that now."

I nodded, still sipping my coffee, holding it before me like a shield between us.

"I can see you are fond of Jasper, and he likes you so I'd like for us to be friends if that's possible? We're going to be forced to live pretty closely for the foreseeable future and it would make things easier if you didn't hate me so much."

"I don't hate you Edward, I don't have the energy left to hate anyone. So long as you just leave me alone I'm fine. As for friends, well let's see shall we? I like Jasper, yes but it's none of your business Edward so back off."

"OK, but we're not enemies any more?"

"No, we're not enemies Edward, there are plenty of real enemies out there without making more. We have to work together if we're going to get out of this."

"I agree. Would you like to take a walk around our new home? It's not much but at least it's safe, for now, or at least it's safe for vampires. I'm not so sure about humans, especially ones who trip over their own shadow."

I slapped his arm and he smiled, he thought I had forgiven him, even if I hadn't forgotten what he had done, or at least I was going to give him a chance to prove he could be my friend.

Outside it was hot and humid and the insects hovered in clouds just waiting for some naked human flesh to dine on and I was glad I was wearing a long-sleeved shirt and pants although they made a beeline for my face and neck and I was glad to hurry inside another hut hidden behind more vegetation.

From the outside it looked just like the other but inside it was filled with computer equipment and out back stood a huge solar array providing power. Only one screen was lit up and Jasper sat at the keyboard staring at the scene it showed. We joined him and I looked at the map that was on the screen. It was a map of Europe and North America and parts were shaded red or yellow with hundreds of the same colored dots clustered in other areas.

"What are they?"

Jasper turned to look at me and I felt my heart stutter, he looked so cool and calm with his sleeves rolled up to the elbow and unbuttoned halfway down. A vision of him without the shirt flickered in my mind and made me blush, what was the matter with me? Here we were hiding in a swamp with bloodthirsty vampires hunting for me and I was speculating on what Jasper would look like semi-naked!

 **Jasper**

I was pleased to see Bella although not in Edward's company, especially as she didn't seem mad at him any longer. When she spoke I detected a hint of something and then felt her embarrassment and wondered what had caused it but I tried to keep my mind on the job and answer her question.

"The yellow are known locations of Volturi supporters, Darius is keeping track of them. The reds are Romanian supporters and their search parties, he's watching them even more closely. If any get too close to our people he tries to warn them. We're going to set up a safe haven for Volturi supporters down here, somewhere we can defend easily."

"Have you found anywhere yet? Why here and not up north? After all, swamps don't worry vampires."

I had almost forgotten Edward until he spoke and forced myself to drag my attention away from Bella to answer him.

"The swamps mean it's more difficult for the Romanians to move in any force without telegraphing their approach. Besides Darius, Peter, and I found a place many years ago and earmarked it for just such an occasion."

"You knew this was going to happen?"

"We expected the Romanians to make a play for the crown and if not them then someone else. It pays to be prepared, Edward."

"How many do you expect to come to the Volturi's aid? Aro and his brothers aren't exactly popular."

"Maybe not but if you knew anything about the Romanians you would understand just how much worse they are. Haven't you listened to anything Carlisle has said over the years? All the stories he told us of our world when under Romanian rule?"

Edward shrugged looking uneasy,

"Of course but I thought it was mainly folklore, put about by the Volturi to make them seem a better choice."

"No, I doubt the stories tell the full horror. I traveled with a nomad once who had lived under Romanian rule and the stories he told made me understand how lucky I was to have been changed after their time or Maria would have seemed like a holiday camp."

"Really? Tell me some of what you heard. I want to know."

I glared at Edward for even imagining that I would tell him such horror stories in front of Bella, didn't he think about her feelings at all?"

"I'm busy, why don't you go ask Carlisle again."

Edward left then, possibly thinking he might have been a little thoughtless I doubted he felt any guilt at being a complete ass hole. Once he was gone Bella pulled up a crate to sit beside me and touched my hand,

"Thank you for ignoring Edward's questions. I know you did it for me but I think perhaps I should know at least a little of what we are facing."

I turned and took her warm delicate hands in my own,

"Bella, whatever happens, I promise you that I will never let you see the kind of things I heard about. I will shield you from all I can."

She sighed then lay her head on my shoulder,

"What's happening to us Jasper? Why do I only feel safe when I can see you? Why are you so determined to look out for me? Edward doesn't like this you know, although I think he and I have reached an understanding of sorts."

I stroked her hair unsure what if anything to tell her when Edward burst back in.

"Carlisle just heard from a friend, it's confirmed, all the Denali's have been snatched by the Romanians and guess what else he discovered, your Mexican Mistress is in charge of training Stefan's newborn army, she'll probably be happy to recruit you back at her side, or whatever position it was you usually found yourself in with her."

Bella turned slowly to look at him and it struck me that I had never seen such a look of disgust on her face before,

"That was low Edward, even by your standards. Forget what I said earlier, I wouldn't be friends with a man who could come out with something that despicable now get the hell out of here but before you go, apologize to Jasper."

Edward stood indecisively then followed a curt "sorry" with a quick exit and I smiled at Bella,

"Well, that told him."

"Yes, it did. I guess I'm as determined to shield you as you are to shield me. That must mean something although I'm not sure I'm ready to face what just yet."


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter Fifteen**

 **Aro**

Staying in Greece was going to be impossible and Marcus and I were forced to admit as much when Felix returned with not only a dozen survivors from our guard who had managed to make their way to Piraeus but news that the Romanians were sending a large detachment of men to hunt us down and capture or kill us.

"They are too well organised and moving too fast for us to make this place secure enough Aro. You must take Carlisle's advice and join him and the rebels he is gathering. Only then will there be time to come up with a plan capable of regaining power for you. I wish I could advise otherwise but we must be sensible or we will lose the little that remains."

"Very well, we'll move out tomorrow. Organize transport for all of us to the United States. Do we know where Carlisle has made his base?"

"Marcus has the communication, it means nothing to me but then I am a mere soldier."

"Not any longer Felix, we are in need of all the loyal and intelligent brothers we can get so you will be joining Marcus and me, along with Caius for as long as he remains."

Felix studied me hard for a few moments then bowed his head,

"I would thank you if I didn't realise you have just painted the target on my back larger than it already was."

He was right of course unless we could win back the leadership of our world.

I went to find Marcus who was busy studying a map of the United States laid out on a table at the window. He looked up when he heard me.

"Sulpicia was looking for you. Caius is missing and she thinks perhaps he is planning on killing himself."

"Then it's best he should do so before we leave, such actions will only draw attention to us. Have you worked out where we are going yet? Felix says Carlisle left us with a puzzle to solve. If I am right we are looking for a place, a town in the southern part of the United States named either Stanley or Livingston. Now there are 11 Livingstons and 15 Stanleys. Then I needed to narrow the search to those which have an observatory close by which leaves me with only one real contender, Livingston Louisiana. Carlisle had great faith I would be able to put the clues together and solve them. Let's just hope that faith was justified shall we?"

I did have great faith in Marcus' abilities, he was probably the most intelligent man I had ever met, a genius when he bothered to put in the effort and I was relying on a little of that genius to pull us through. We would need every vestige of ability, courage, and luck we could get. So while he and Felix finalized the travel arrangements I went looking for my wife. I found her eventually standing on the edge of the cliff overlooking the sea.

"Marcus tells me you were looking for me my love. Did you find Caius?"

She turned to me grim-faced,

"Yes, but it did no good."

She turned and ran into my arms looking for comfort.

"What is it Sulpicia?"

"He was in so much pain Aro and felt so much guilt that he survived and ran when his wife was trapped and killed. I know how he felt, how I felt when I feared you too might die. There was such an aching loneliness, a terrible black pain hovering ready to descend upon me. He just couldn't go on, not without his beloved Athena.."

I wanted to point out that hurting her with his dalliances hadn't bothered him too much but now was not the time.

"So, what did he do?"

Sulpicia took a deep breath and pulled free taking my hand to pull me closer to the cliff edge.

"He stood here looking out to sea for some time and then he took out a lighter. I begged him not to but I could see it made no difference. He just set fire to his cloak and as it began to flare up he raised his arms to the sky as if reaching for her and stepped off into the air. I ran forward to watch as he tumbled down like a firework and the strange thing was there was no sound, he didn't scream, not once. By the time he hit the ocean the flames had died and I saw his body crumble, ashes lying on the waves. It was glorious and terrible at the same time. Does that make any sense? I can hardly believe I will never see either of them again, that for them it is all over."

I nodded, I could understand how alone and frightened Sulpicia felt now her only remaining friends were dead. She had already lost Chelsea, Athena, and Corin, all killed when the Romanians stormed our citadel and now Caius who had been with us almost as long as Marcus, was gone too.

"Try not to worry Sulpicia, we will rise again and there will be new friends, besides I have…..."

She interrupted me,

"You should raise Felix you know, he would make a great Volturi leader."

I smiled, as always our thoughts ran along the same tracks.

"Then you approve of my latest action?"

She beamed at me, taking my hands in hers,

"The Volturi may be reeling now but it will rise again, new and stronger than ever with Marcus and Felix at our side and maybe, this time, you will be able to persuade Carlisle to join us. There is The Major's mate Isabella too, It's imperative that we persuade her we are the best future for the vampires."

I nodded, letting her run on.

"You told me when you met her that she intrigued you but you have no idea how powerful her shield will be once she becomes a vampire. So far she has been able to keep you and Edward from her thoughts and that is all. But then not every gifted human becomes a powerful vampire."

I could see her faltering, witnessing Caius fiery death was finally getting to her.

"True but we must think positive my dear. Remember the early days when we decided to wrest control of our world from the Romanians? We must be equally as positive and determined this time around."

Felix appeared before we could discuss the future any more,

"I am sorry to interrupt Aro but we need to leave now, the Romanians are on their way and if we do not act quickly we risk being captured or besieged."

He looked at Sulpicia's tragic face and I nodded,

"It seems Caius will not be joining us in this fight after all Felix, he has decided to join his beloved mate so it is back to a Triumvirate. Come my dear."

Everyone was waiting for us on the beach below the cliffs as a large launch manoeuvred as close to the rocks as was safe.

"When we reach the port there will be a bus waiting to transport us to the airport. We are a group of scholars headed to a convention in the United States. I have documents for everyone here. Do not lose them, I have no way of obtaining more until we land. There will be a private jet waiting for us, chartered by our scientific research establishment. Just remember to be careful and stay vigilant. If the Romanians stop us leaving Greece then our cause is lost."

Felix was always so good at these kind of speeches and soon we were all aboard the launch and on our way.

"How far behind us are they?"

"No more than a couple of hours, it's going to be close but we can make it. Once in the air, we will change our destination but of course, the plane will in actuality land at a third location. I didn't want to lead the Romanians straight to us so we couldn't fly to the closest airport. Once we land I will have several vehicles waiting and we will split up. It will be harder to follow all of us that way."

"Very well but you stay with Marcus, Sulpicia, and myself. I will not lose you now my friend."

Felix nodded looking slightly uncomfortable with his new position in the Volturi but I knew without him at my side there would be no future for us.

As we approached the port I tensed, this was where the Romanians would be waiting if they knew of our plans. This is where we could meet our death. The quayside looked normal enough, plenty of people moving around although it was late evening. Felix was first onto dry land and he stood looking around before beckoning us to follow, he hadn't sensed any danger which was a relief but we were not out of the woods yet, the could still be waiting at the airfield for us. The bus was waiting and Felix spoke to the driver as he started off then nodded to me. So, no strangers around either. I looked around at our pitiful number, all the familiar faces missing except for Heidi and Demetri although his particular talent was not needed right now. I just hoped Marcus had worked out Carlisle's clues correctly or Demetri would be our only hope of finding our friends before our enemies found us.


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter Sixteen**

 **Carlisle**

When we got the coded message from Felix telling me that the survivors of the attack on Volterra were on their way I was relieved. I had wondered if maybe Aro would try to find somewhere else to make a base but it seemed he had never contemplated an attack that would succeed. I suppose over the centuries the Volturi had become as complacent as those they overthrew, they had no threats from anyone and assumed their enemies had given up any hope of wresting control from Aro's hands. This had come as an enormous shock to my old friend and now would be a telling time, how many would join his campaign to overcome the Romanians?

Those old enough to remember Stefan and Vladimir from their days as our leaders would certainly not want to relive those days but the younger vampires who had only ever known the Volturi might think a new regime would be better and if that were to happen we might well find ourselves under the iron fist of the Romanians once more. Those who were not on their list of traitors and undesirables that was.

When Edward came storming in I knew he had done something stupid, he just couldn't help himself when Bella was around, or so it seemed. Emmett had managed a quick version of what Edward had said to Bella before he left her in Forks. If I didn't know better I would have sworn Emmett was making it all up but Edward had always been a fool where Bella was concerned, he just couldn't be himself and let her be herself. Bella wasn't the kind of girl to appreciate being smothered, she needed room to breathe and he just wouldn't see that. Well, it was too late now and the words he had spoken to her couldn't be taken back. He would have to live with the consequences and it would seem he had somehow just made matters worse which was a pity as they seemed to have been on friendlier terms a few hours back.

I was lucky because Esme caught his attention first and he followed her to the edge of the swamp talking fast and angrily. The more I heard the more I thought there was going to be trouble between the three of them if Edward didn't stop and think before opening his mouth but now was not the time to deal with that. I had more important things on my mind, such as sending out messages to everyone I thought might be on the Romanians "to do" list and who could be relied on to help us and give them just enough information to enable them to start their journey towards us. There was a small window of opportunity for us to gather together all those who would be willing to join forces with the Volturi survivors before the Romanians pinpointed our position. Once they did we would be trapped, or at least that's what we wanted them to think.

Jasper and his friends had picked the location of our headquarters very carefully, for which I was extremely grateful although I had thought they were being way too cautious when he first told me of their plan, no details just their suspicions and the actions they took as a result.

This location had been chosen very carefully for several reasons, one there was an old underground slave railway that led from the swamps to Mexico and another that led northwards and many of the old markers and hideouts were still in position although we would be travelling in the opposite direction, further south into the south-east Louisiana Wildlife Refuges which were sparsely populated and therefore meant fewer humans to become caught up in our war and less food for the Romanians and their followers who would all be human hunters.

That played into our hands although I had pointed out that there were a lot of our own side who hunted humans too, including Peter and Darius. It was Peter who explained that he and Charlotte along with Darius had tried living on blood bags they acquired from various blood banks and found while not particularly palatable it was possible to do, so blood would be stolen to fill the ice house built deep underground at the battle site.

This was something that would take some persuasion for our human hunters but safer than leaving the refuge to hunt while keeping them strong. For the animal hunters among us, the place had more than enough choice and I did wonder if I might make some converts while we were there.

When my phone rang I wondered if it was Aro with news of their whereabouts but it was Peter. He and Darius were mopping up as he put it and the others should be here in a few hours.

"How is Charlie? He sounded pretty stunned when I spoke to him, which is understandable enough."

"Only interested in Bella's safety, that's one cool dude under pressure, he might just prove useful."

"I never wanted him dragged into this, Bella either."

"You never had a choice, Carlisle, now you have to make the best of it just like they do. No sign of any serious opposition here yet but I don't suppose it will be long so get your finger out and start moving people fast."

"I'm already on it."

"Good."

He rang off at that and I shook my head, Peter while an excellent warrior, and friend to Jasper was sadly lacking in any social skills which might bring him into opposition with others who were about to arrive, namely the Volturi. I could imagine a meeting between the suave and sophisticated leader of the Volturi and the simple homespun crudity of the soldier, it would be interesting, to say the least.

Still, I should let Bella know her father would be joining us soon and perhaps have a quiet word about Edward at the same time. I did not want to see any trouble in the camp between the two of them, or even more dangerously between Jasper and Edward. Unfortunately with an as yet unattached female around, one that Edward insisted he still loved but who seemed to have eyes for only his brother, it would be difficult to avoid tension. I found them in Darius' communication hut sitting close together and Bella looked a little flustered when she saw me.

"I wonder if I might have a word?"

Bella started to get up but I stayed her motion with a smile and a gesture of my hand,

"Both of you. Firstly, Bella, your father will be here shortly and while I know you will be eager to see him and spend time together we do have a problem. I will need to talk to him about what staying here means for him, with the Volturi arriving any time."

"You mean about him staying human? It's not fair to force a change on him, Carlisle, none of this is his fault."

Jasper took her hand knowing instinctively that she was becoming upset,

"Bella, no one wants to force your father into anything but he will be in great danger unless he stays and also in danger here with so many human hunters in the camp and by knowing about us he is breaking our laws."

"But not by choice Jasper."

Feeling even more uneasy I continued,

"There was something else I wanted to bring up while we are alone. It's about Edward…."

I didn't get any further before Bella jumped to her feet, her eyes blazing with anger but Jasper told me what had just occurred and I closed my eyes with a groan.

"Look, son, I know you understand how important it is for us all to remain a coherent group. We cannot afford for rivalries or ill feeling if we are going to beat the Romanians."

"And have you had this little fatherly chat with Edward as well? Or is it OK for him to go around insulting people and acting like a spoiled brat because of who he is?"

Bella's voice was dripping sarcasm as Jasper glanced at her and I understood he too wondered the same thing.

"I have but I didn't know what had just happened and I will be speaking to him again. All I ask is that you try not to antagonize him, we need to pull together."

"Antagonize? Do you mean not tell him to go to hell when he acts like a real dick, Carlisle? Because the Bella who would have done that got left behind in Forks remember? If he keeps his mouth shut and his distance, so will I, but that's all I will agree to."

I could see she had an ally and that I would have to be content with that,

"I'll let you know as soon as Charlie arrives Bella and thank you for that."

She nodded and turned her attention back to the computer screen, or was it, Jasper, I was hard pressed to tell.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter Seventeen**

 **Jasper**

As soon as Carlisle was out of the room Bella turned to me, shock in her eyes.

"Will they force my father to become a vampire?"

"I don't know what will happen, Bella, I won't lie to you, but I think for his own good he will have to become one of us. He cannot stay here as a human, Aro and the others who are on their way would see it as breaking the law at a time when the rules must be obeyed even more closely. Besides it would be too dangerous for him to be a human when it comes to a fight and it will Bella. There is no other way of dealing with the Romanians, they will never speak to the Volturi, diplomacy is alien to their way of thinking."

She sighed deeply and slumped back onto her seat leaning against me and taking my hand in hers once more quite unconsciously.

"I suppose it's only right. There is only the two of us left now and I know he won't leave me if he thinks I am in danger. Besides, if I become a vampire and he doesn't, we'll never see each other again."

"You are determined to join us then?"

She turned to stare at me, eyes wide,

"Of course, Please don't tell me you are about to give me the speech."

"The speech? Oh, you mean the one Edward gave you about it being a tragedy you becoming a vampire. No, because I happen to think you are destined to become one of us, ever since we first met you I thought that."

"I also know that when the Volturi get here the pressure for me to become a vampire will be ramped up. Aro was really interested in my gift and if he thinks it can help him win this war he's going to want it badly."

"That's no reason to change though Bella."

She smiled at me and my thoughts whirled, what was this girl doing to me?

"I'm not blind, I know I have no choice, as a human I am doomed, everyone wants me, either dead or working for them and please don't tell me that you would keep me safe. I know you would try but a life on the run from everyone is no life at all. You deserve better than that and I would never ask a soldier to desert a battle. Instead, I want to be there fighting for what I think is right, at your side."

At my side? Did she really understand what she was saying?

"OK, it seems you've already made your mind up but you need to speak to your father before you go ahead with anything."

She bit her lip and I wanted to put up my hand to stop her but I was frightened if I did I might just replace it with my own lips and I wasn't sure either of us were really ready for that step just yet.

"There is just one thing, Edward told me about the newborn phase, when a new vampire is out of control and thinking only of blood. I won't be any good to our side if I can't control myself and use my gift so I was wondering if…."

She hesitated and I continued for her,

"You want to know if I can use my gift to help you control yourself so you will be useful in battle?"

She nodded flushing with embarrassment that had me wanting to hold her close, smell her scent against my body but I pushed the thought away, now was not the time for those kinds of musings.

"I can if you want me to but it will mean us becoming very close for some time. Does that thought worry you? I will feel all your emotions very clearly."

"I need to be useful Jasper and I trust you."

She looked out the gap in the hut that served as a window and carried on very quietly,

"I think you are probably the only person here that I do really trust."

 **Edward**

As soon as I saw Esme I grabbed her hoping for some support, she would see how hard all this was for me. We had spoken at length about my feelings for Bella, how I knew I had been wrong to deny her the choice to stay at my side. Surely she would see just how hard it was for me to see her cozying up to Jasper who had caused all the trouble in the first place.

She couldn't possibly choose him over me, he was only one step removed from a savage and though his particular skills were going to be in great demand during the next few days and months that didn't make him wonder boy!

"I tried so hard Esme and I don't seem to be getting anywhere."

"Edward I think you have to accept the fact that Bella no longer sees you as the love of her life. You seem to think she should fly back into your arms and forgive you everything but I told you that wouldn't happen. You abandoned her and now I hear you said some pretty terrible things to her. The fact she is willing to accept you as a friend shows she is trying and we can't have the two of you at each other's throats, this just isn't the time."

"I know Esme and I thought she and I had some kind of understanding I could build on. That perhaps I could explain what I said and why, I love her, you know that."

"I thought the two of you had reached an understanding. What happened Edward? She agreed to be friends."

"I know but then she changes like the wind. I just made a slight reference to Jasper's days with Maria and she blew up in my face."

Esme rolled her eyes groaning and rubbed her temples in exasperation,

"Will you never learn, Edward? She sees Jasper as a friend, I think she always has done despite your insistence that she was scared of him so bad mouthing him won't get you anywhere. You need to think before you speak or you might find Bella throwing you to the wolves when it comes to a showdown between the Romanians and ourselves."

Just then Carlisle appeared and I could see from his expression that he was ready to give me a lecture too. Had I really been so wrong to remind Bella that Jasper had been Maria's lover for years? That he wasn't the innocent young man she seemed to see when she looked at him. Esme moved away and I got up shaking my head,

"No more lectures thank you. I may not be the brightest star in the sky when it comes to affairs of the heart but I do see what has happened. I blew it with Bella and I was a fool to expect she might come back to me when she saw me again. I still say sending Jasper and Emmett to collect her was wrong, it would have given me time to talk to her, to explain my previous disastrous behaviour but I understand it's too late and I won't do or say anything to make matters worse between us or between myself and Jasper which is probably more important right now."

"Oh, I don't know son, I'm not sure which of them is the most dangerous about now. I'd just keep my head down and my mouth closed. That's all I'm going to say because from the sound of things here comes Bella's father."

 **Carlisle**

Charlie looked somewhat bemused but seeing me, a more familiar face he came over with a thousand questions, the most important of all being where was his daughter?

She had heard his arrival, or more probably Jasper had, and they came running up, Bella throwing herself at her father in relief while he looked rather uncomfortable at the outward show of affection.

"Dad, I'm so glad you are safe, I was worried, especially when they told me about mom. She was so brave trying to fight them."

"Yes, she was, but then she was protecting you and I know that's the one thing Renee would give up everything for, to keep you safe. She loved you very much Bells."

I gestured for everyone to disperse and give them some privacy while I spoke with Emmett and Rosalie to hear any news they had picked up from the outside world.


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter Eighteen**

 **Charlie**

When I saw Bella with the strange and silent Jasper Hale I was relieved but also terrified for her more than myself. Emmett and to a lesser degree Rosalie had explained what was going on in this secret world of theirs and Bella's gift which was so highly sought by the usurpers that they were willing to kill anyone to get it. The very fact she was safe here didn't do as much to ease my concerns as perhaps it should.

True she was safe and well but still among vampires who while not threatening her would surely want the same thing from her and it was my understanding that would entail her becoming a vampire too. It seemed strange knowing that my daughter had been in on the secret of vampires all this time and hadn't said a word, she had even fallen in love with one although that had fizzled out when he left Forks. What I wasn't so sure of is how she would react to seeing Edward Cullen once more or how I would feel if I saw them together.

It felt good to have her in my arms, so pleased to see me, we had never been demonstrative before but it just felt right under the circumstances. When she finally stood back I found we were alone and taking my arm she wandered to the edge of the creek before speaking as if to give us more privacy.

"I'm glad Emmett and Rose got to you in time, I feel responsible for mom's death."

"It was a freak accident Bella but better than she could have expected from them I guess. How long have you known the Cullens were vampires?"

She looked a little sheepish as she answered,

"Almost from the beginning but I promised to keep their secret for all our sakes. I'm just sorry you got dragged into things."

I looked out over the sluggish running water to the dense vegetation beyond wondering how alone we really were.

"You'll become one too won't you? I guess it was on the cards when you and Edward were together. Did his disappearance have anything to do with that? Did he try to force you into a decision?"

Her laughter startled not only me but the birds too and those close by took off in fright.

"Actually, it was the other way round. I wanted to join him in his world and he was dead set against it."

"You wanted to become a vampire?"

She nodded sighing heavily,

"At the time I thought we were destined to spend eternity together but I was wrong."

"Yeah, I always thought he was too controlling for you. Whatever you did had to get his approval. Besides…."

I lowered my voice conspiratorially,

"I thought he was a dick."

We both laughed at that although she looked around as if sure the others had heard my remark.

"Has he spoken to you since you saw him again?"

"Yes, and I made it clear I wanted nothing to do with him personally although at first I thought we could still be friends."

"But you can't? That's not unusual with someone you thought a lot of and then found it wasn't reciprocated."

She knew I was referring to her mom as well as Edward but didn't comment on the fact.

"You know it's going to come down to a war don't you dad? And there's nowhere you can hide that will be safe."

"I've never been one for hiding Bella if there's a war I'll be joining in on the side of right although with all the protagonists being vampires that might be more difficult to decide on. Or would have been before I knew you were with the Cullens."

She wanted to ask me about becoming a vampire too but I could see getting the words out was going to be difficult so I ploughed on.

"I spoke to Emmett about the upcoming war. He said it will be violent and deadly with the winning side destroying all the enemy. A human doesn't stand a chance against a vampire so I guess there's no choice for me really. It's become a vampire myself or die."

"And that's all my fault."

She looked anguished and I pulled her into another strangely comforting hug.

"No Bella, it's no one's fault and I certainly don't blame you. I guess it will be a new start for me too but Emmett did say it can take years to become controlled as a vampire so I'm not sure how much use I'll be as a vampire when it comes down to it."

I heard a quiet cough and spun around to see Jasper Hale standing at a distance,

"I may be able to help with that Chief Swan, I have some experience training newborn vampires."

His eyes flickered to Bella then back as if sharing some information and he continued,

"But you are right, a newborn vampire is unpredictable and you could well die fighting more experienced vampires but you will have two things on your side, strength and speed. As a newborn you will be stronger and faster than any others."

"So, it's not all doom and gloom. How many fighters do we have compared to the Romanians?"

"At the moment I have no idea, the Romanians have been secretly building an army ready for the coup and we are starting from the rear, building up such forces as we can. The good thing is that we have some of the best fighters in our world, the bad is we have no idea how many gifted vampires they have but we do not have many. They made sure to kill as many as they could when they launched their first strike against the Volturi."

"In other words young man, you don't have the faintest idea who's going to come flying through this swamp until they arrive."

"Not quite Chief, we do have eyes and ears outside and spies of our own. We have a pretty good idea where our enemy has forces and new recruits are appearing at a staging post and will be sent to our ultimate location which I hasten to add will be a long way from any human population. There will be human casualties, that's unavoidable but far less than if the Romanians continue as leaders of our world, trust me."

"Do you think my daughter can really help your side to win?"

"I hope so Chief, she has a gift that at the moment only protects herself from mental attacks but as a vampire it will certainly become more powerful and I think possibly a physical shield too, at least strong enough to protect her from harm. Even if we lose the battle, as a vampire Bella has a good chance of surviving and her shield would make her safe from anyone trying to use her. That's all I can ask for."

"It sounds like you are pretty concerned for her safety son."

I could feel there was something in the air but neither seemed willing to speak it out loud so I just nodded,

"Not that I mind, anyone who wants to protect my daughter is OK with me."

"You say that now Chief Swan but you might not be so eager when you know just who you are so pleased about."

Edward had appeared and I found I liked him even less when he was sneering than I had before and that was pretty darn difficult as I had never liked the kid anyway and hated him after what he did to Bella. Both my daughter and Jasper had stiffened but then Jasper smiled coldly at his "brother".

"And guess who wants to tell Chief Swan all the dirty little secrets he thinks I'm hiding? Go ahead Edward, I'm not ashamed of my past, none of it was by choice and it makes me the best person to keep Bella and her father safe. Besides Bella already knows most of it thanks to you and she's standing here right now, not next to you, but me. Not quite how you expected things to go is it?"

Bella took his hand which really ticked Edward off, I was beginning to enjoy myself for a moment,

"Yes Edward, tell my dad about Jasper, everything you know, it won't make the slightest difference to me, I couldn't possibly hate you any more than I do already. In fact, I wonder what I ever saw in you. Carlisle asked us to keep cool and not fight among ourselves and we agreed but when this is all over and we are victorious you'd better start watching your back."


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter Nineteen**

 **Aro**

Looking around I was convinced that Marcus had been mistaken, why would Carlisle send us to this particular hell-hole? We were miles from anywhere with hardly a human within ten miles except those Marcus insisted were off limits, the scientists at the Gravitational Wave Observatory. Quite what they were doing there remained a mystery despite my brother's best efforts at explaining but then I was concerned with more important things, such as getting back my crown and killing the Romanian rats that had stolen it from under my nose. Of course, I had to accept it had been largely my own fault, complacency is the most dangerous of feelings, it had given me the crown from Stefan and it had enabled him to snatch it right back, it seems we do not learn as much from the past as we should.

"How long are we going to remain here before Marcus admits his mistake or Stefan appears to kill us all, Aro?"

"Patience my dear."

I was, however coming to Sulpicia's way of thinking when suddenly there was a high pitched whistle from the undergrowth to our left and a girl came into view. A rather lovely blonde I recognized as Carlisle's "daughter" Rosalie Hale. Marcus turned to us but where anyone else would be wearing an "I told you so." expression he looked merely bored.

"Shall we go?"

Sulpicia frowned at his cool tone, took my arm, and walked over to where Rosalie was standing. Although I had met all of Carlisle's family the blonde was still something of an enigma. She was the one vampire I had met who still hated her existence even after meeting her mate. I wondered how it must be, living a life you hated but one that was destined to go on for eternity unless you met with death at the hands of another of your kind.

Carlisle had explained Rosalie's problem to us, she wanted to be a mother, to have a family of her own, the one thing a vampire could never have. I recollected Sulpicia's similar grief when she discovered she could not have a baby.

Personally, I never saw the attraction of the smelly noisy things but then I was not a woman. My dear mate eventually found other things to occupy her time and over the years her yearning diminished whereas Esme Cullen had found a family in the others Carlisle collected around him, Edward, Emmett, Rosalie, Alice, and of course The Major.

It was a tragedy that Alice had been killed by those chasing her, a serious blunder on the Romanian's part in not collecting her gift and I wondered if those responsible were still alive. If they had worked for me they would be smoke and ashes for that serious blunder.

Emmett's appearance brought me back from my musings as he explained that we had to run most of the way and this part of the swamps was not our ultimate destination. I gestured that he should take his place at my side so he could fill me in on what was going on as we ran. It was a relief to hear we had eyes and ears on the outside world. While Marcus had done his best it was unnerving to be partially blind and deaf. Up to date information on our enemies was vital and Darius had ensured we had that. Thinking of the taciturn warrior I reflected it was a good thing that Caius was dead. If not, there would have been trouble between the two and we could not afford discord in the camp.

I pumped Emmett for information on the human girl, she had fascinated me when I met her in Volterra and now we would see what becoming a vampire meant for her gift. If the Romanians wanted her so badly, then so did we, and we had her in our camp.

"I thought Edward had left Isabella. It must have been a relief to him to have her back safely."

I heard Rosalie laugh harshly and knew something had changed,

"Or is the young woman not as enamoured of Edward as she once was?"

"You'll have to see for yourself, we haven't been there since Bella arrived, we've been busy finding others, like her father."

"Her father? You mean the police officer? Well, well, I wonder what he will make of all this. Of course, having humans in on our secret is rather worrying and must be dealt with speedily. I hope Carlisle has made their position perfectly clear?"

Having nothing more for me I allowed Emmett to forge ahead to his mate's side and fell into step with Sulpicia once more.

"What do you think my dear? Two newborns in the camp, it could be awkward."

"You should seriously consider ridding ourselves of the man. While one newborn can be handled, two could present us with problems although The Major is the expert with such creatures Aro."

"Yes, The Major, quite a coup having him fighting for us, and his friends of course. Unfortunately we are going to be reliant on such as he with so many of our own guard dead or still scattered."

Arriving at the makeshift camp I was pleased to see Carlisle waiting for me together with Darius and another fighter I did not know by sight but by the sardonic smile on his face I took him to be The Major's Captain, Peter Whitlock. I had heard much of his fighting skills but I knew he was insubordinate and arrogant. We would see just how good he really was in the fullness of time, for now, I would ignore him and concentrate on my old friend.

"Felix, see what you can discover about the fighting men here, Marcus perhaps you can find Isabella and see what is happening between her and Edward. I don't like being ignorant of the undercurrents."

They both nodded and split off while I went forward to greet Carlisle.

"It is good to see you old friend, although I wish the circumstances could have been different. Darius, you'll be pleased to hear that Caius is dead. I hope there will be no animosity between the rest of us."

"There are more important enemies to concern myself with for now, Aro. The Romanians have a large fighting force and they know the general area we are confined to. Luckily travelling here takes time but I do have some unsettling news."

Carlisle gestured for me to follow them inside a shack which contained much electronic equipment.

"I was told you had your finger on the pulse of our world and I see I was correctly informed, very impressive. What is it that disturbs you, Darius?"

"The Romanians are not trying to hide their kills as they move, there have been several incidents of slaughter as they hunt down those on their death lists and not only vampires. There have been several reports of villages of humans being slaughtered to feed their army."

"But it makes it easier for you to follow their progress?"

"Yes, but it brings our existence worryingly close to the surface, the humans will soon start looking for creatures who drink the blood of their kind. We don't need to be fighting Stefan and Vladimir while also hiding from the humans."

I looked at our surroundings,

"I think Carlisle chose a place where that was unlikely to happen don't you Darius? It will be difficult for our supporters though my friend, we are not all animal hunters like you."

"I didn't find this place or do the planning, you have Jasper, Darius, and their friend Peter to thank for that."  
I listened in rising astonishment as he explained their plan of supplying our fighters with donated blood stolen from clinics and hospitals and stored at the final encampment.

"Surely that will not last long? Not with the numbers we are hoping will appear to help us."

"No, so we cannot afford to wait long before launching our attack on the Romanians. It will have to be an all-out battle rather than a war of attrition, we cannot hope to win such a conflict."

"Won't the Romanians be aware of that Carlisle? All they need do is hold back and wait for us to be starved out."

"Of course, so we have to force them to attack as soon as we are ready."

"How many can we expect to stand with the remainder of the Volturi guard?"

"Not nearly enough, we have to take the fight to them and The Major has a plan for that too."

"Then let's not waste any time, where is he?... Oh yes, just one small matter that must be dealt with Carlisle. The two humans in the camp, when are they going to be turned?"

He hesitated,

"It is under control Aro, you will just have to trust me for now."  
Trust him? Had my friend forgotten so soon that I trusted no one, not even my friends, or my brothers, with perhaps the exception of Felix?


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter Twenty**

 **Aro**

It seemed I had a lot to thank The Major and his friends for but then that was what they did best, arrange things so they won the war. There would be a lot of tidying up when this was all over and I just hoped we could get back to our invisible status among the humans. That depended to a large degree on how much damage Stefan and Vladimir did in the meantime.

Killing humans and leaving their drained bodies to be found by the authorities was going to make things a lot more difficult but I was sure we could manage the P.R mess once we took control again and we would, of that I was convinced.

There were no separate quarters for us so while Sulpicia became reacquainted with Esme and Felix and Marcus were still busy with their own investigations I asked Carlisle to introduce me to Isabella's father.

We found him with Emmett and The Major's friend and I could tell the latter was not pleased to see me although that was not a reaction that bothered me in the slightest, leaders were rarely popular, not good ones anyway.

My first impression of the girl's father was favorable. He seemed cool and calm despite his place here among vampires and as a police officer I expected him to have a certain amount of combat skills.

Carlisle introduced me and we shook hands, his was warm and soft but the grip was firm and I was fascinated to read his thoughts, a whole lifetime of them. I had been right, he was apprehensive but not afraid.

I sensed an iron will beneath that pleasant exterior, he could lead men and that was what we wanted right now. He had also decided that his only real option was to become a vampire although I thought his reason, to protect his daughter, was superfluous she had plenty of champions as it was in the Cullen camp.

"So, you've read my life history, what next? I assume you know my decision and with Jasper's help, we are sure I can control myself enough to be of use in battle."

"Yes, I think you could and I have to say I am pleased with your decision, it would have been such a waste if we had been forced to kill you, Chief Swan."

He smiled,

"Oh, you might find I'm not quite that easy to kill but it would be a shame to kill one of our own now wouldn't it?"

Captain Whitlock was beaming as the Chief took a lighter from his pocket and flicked the wheel before handing it back to him,

"Now you see, you just never know from the look of someone whether they are soft or hard. That can be a real bastard sometimes. By the way, just so you know, I'm not here for the Volturi. I don't personally give a fuck who wears the crown."

"Then why are you here Captain? Loyalty to your friends? How admirable."

He shook his head looking at me scornfully,

"Loyalty? Nah, I just couldn't miss the opportunity to kick some vampire ass."

With that, he patted the chief on the back,

"Come on Charlie it's getting a bit stuffy here and we have work to do."

As they turned and walked away I could see Carlisle tense, would I feel anger at being treated so rudely? I smiled and put a hand on his shoulders,

"You should know me better than that Carlisle, we need them and there's nothing wrong with a little bravado, so long as he can back it up when the time comes."

"Oh, he can. I'd put money on him any day Aro and like you said, you're short of good fighters and without them, you don't stand a chance. The Romanians are going to come down on you like a swarm of ravenous locusts."

I nodded, The Major might be arrogant but he was right, I did need him, and his friends.

"So Major, you have this all planned out, thank you. It's a pity you didn't think to warn the Volturi a little earlier."

"Why? You wouldn't have believed me, you were too busy sitting on your golden throne acting superior and looking down on the likes of me and my friends. Sometimes the world turns turtle and life's a real bitch if it does. You have what you want in respect of Charlie, and Bella has already made up her mind, in fact, I started the transformation before you got here."

Carlisle and I stared at each other in amazement,

"You did? And what pray did Edward have to say about that?"

"Nothing Aro, why should he? He left her."

"Where is she Jasper? Surely you haven't left her undefended somewhere? I haven't heard anything."

"No Carlisle, it seems our Bella is rather special. That shield Aro here was so keen to get his hands on when they met last is stronger than he thought."

My eyes opened wide in shock as I understood the importance of his words,

"It's protecting her from the pain of the transformation? Surely that's impossible?"

"It would seem not Aro, but don't worry Carlisle, she isn't alone, Charlotte is with her. There didn't seem any point in delay and she didn't want Charlie worried about her. Now if you'll excuse me I have work to do. Oh, by the way, Darius sent a message, there are a dozen of your guard on their way in along with several others. We have a few hours at most and then we need to move out, anyone who hasn't arrived by then will be too late."

"Is that time critical?"

"If you want to live, then yes."

 **Jasper**

Leaving Aro and Carlisle, pleased with the way I had shocked the former, I went back to check everything was still the same with Bella before sending Peter, Charlie, and a couple of the experienced Volturi guards with her to our new campsite. Charlie had wanted to be transformed straight away but as I pointed out that would be far too dangerous, hampering us if we needed to fight suddenly. Instead, he and Bella would be transported on and Peter would begin Charlie's transformation as soon as they arrived. It meant he might still be undergoing the transformation when we were forced to engage the enemy but better that than putting us all in danger now.

I had to admit to being shocked when Bella begged me to change her immediately, she was desperate to help in the war that was fast approaching and knew as a human she was likely to die or at best be a hindrance to us. She knew I had changed many humans but that wasn't what made her want me to be her sire. She said again that I was the only person here she trusted with the exception of her father and he couldn't help even had he wanted to. When I asked if she was sure she smiled and touched my face gently with a warm soft palm.

"There is so much I want to say to you, so much we need to talk about but the one thing we don't have is time, Jasper. So, everything must wait until we stand victorious or perhaps we will burn together on the same pyre."

I mirrored her action, feeling the warm softness of her cheek beneath my stone cold palm,

"Very well, you are right of course but there is one thing I have to tell you, Bella."

She shook her head,

"Not now or I couldn't bear to go through with all this please, besides there just isn't time now or the privacy I want. Tell me later when we can discuss what lies ahead for us but promise me one thing."

"Anything."

"Do all you can to save our world, Stefan and Vladimir don't deserve it."

We had found a quiet place for Bella to begin her journey into my world. She didn't want to hear any more words and bowing to her wishes I kissed her briefly holding her as if terrified I might never see or speak to her again then injected my venom into her neck only speaking when I knew she could no longer hear my words,

"I love you Bella Swan and we will have that conversation if I have to kill every one of the Romanian supporters with my own hands."

It wasn't long until I realized my own gift wouldn't be necessary. At first, I worried that something had gone very wrong but then it dawned on me that Bella's shield was far more powerful than I could have imagined, she laid cocooned inside its protection while her human cells burned to ash to be replaced by vampire cells. Bella would be the only vampire in history not to feel the agony of her transformation and I was relieved to know it. Calling on Charlotte to watch over Bella until they were ready to leave I was free to go and do what I did best, continue preparations for the fast approaching war.


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter Twenty One**

 **Carlisle**

Jasper's news had come as a bolt out of the blue although I knew Bella had become determined to take her place in our world now she had a reason once more. She was determined to avenge her mother's death and….well, I might be wrong but I didn't think so, she and Jasper were closer than mere friends. Edward sensed as much and I thought it was probably one of the reasons he was being so thoughtless with his words. Jealousy could be highly destructive and now was not the time for it but I had done all I could in the matter.

"Carlisle, I've got a strange message here."

I turned to see Esme holding out her cell phone to me. Darius had warned us the using them would only aid the Romanians in pinpointing our position but as it was our only way of contacting most people he had tried to scramble the signal.

I took the phone from her and read the message on the screen,

"To betray no one I betray them all, may I find forgiveness."

I nodded giving Esme back her phone,

"It's from Carmen I think, she must be free but unable to come to us."

"Why would they free her at all, though?"

"Well, she's no use as a weapon against Eleazar, especially now Stefan has the girls so I would guess that Stefan allowed her to go free hoping she might lead them directly to us."

"So she can't join us and she is cut off from her family? What will she do?"

"Lose her tracker if she can and hide until it's all over. That's all she can do I'm afraid but, at least we know she is safe for now."

It wasn't what Esme wanted to hear I knew but it was the truth and I wouldn't lie to her.

More supporters were still arriving, funnelled to the camp by Emmett, **Demetri,** and Felix while Esme, Sulpicia and Rosalie gathered together those who arrived and explained our plan then directed them on to Darius and Marcus who were gleaning all the intelligence they could from the newcomers. The others were busy packing up ready to leave as soon as the last of the stragglers arrived, with a cut-off point of no more than one precious hour. Aro and I tried to decide exactly what the Romanians were likely to do.

"I agree with The Major that Stefan and Vladimir themselves are unlikely to enter the swamps, they will send in some men to try and flush us out while they wait like spiders for us to come to them."

"We need to know exactly where they are Aro if they decide to hang back too far then we could get caught out. We need to take the fight to them if we are to have any hope of a quick victory and I'm not sure we could win if this drags on too long, they have the numbers, we do not."

"Carlisle is right Aro. The Major is a master tactician and a leader even I am content to follow."

Felix had joined us,

"There are no more allies coming, not that will get here in time and Darius has just told me that the Romanians have a large force approaching from the north, we are out of time, we must leave now or risk being attacked before we are ready."

Darius and Jasper appeared then, the latter snapping commands as he approached,

"We move now, those left behind, who are too late to join us will split up into small parties in the swamp and try to confuse the Romanian trackers. We are leaving coded messages for them."

Aro studied him, hard faced.

"Have the humans left yet Major?"

"Yes, they left some time ago Aro."

"You took a risk changing Isabella before they left, showing a blatant disregard for the safety of everyone here."

"According to you Aro but then I am in command here at the moment so I make the decisions and give the orders while you follow them. We need Bella's gift as quickly as possible and that was the only way to ensure we stood a chance of having her at our side in time. That's the last decision I shall justify to you, so don't question me again."

My friend wasn't at all happy with Jasper's tone but he knew he needed The Major far more than The Major needed him and understanding this he just nodded curtly.

"Very well, just ensure we are victorious Major, for now, you have the upper hand."

There was a threat implicit in his words but Jasper merely ignored it.

Charlotte

I had insisted on accompanying Bella and Charlie but watching her was unnerving. She appeared asleep, like in a fairytale, yet I knew what was happening to her body. I could still remember the agony of the change after all these years. her heart stuttered and beat first too rapidly and then too slow, her lungs still dragged in fresh air although it was no longer really necessary. Charlie watched her too as we travelled on and I wondered if he thought all he had been told about the transformation was wrong, better he thinks that than fear it as it moved ever closer for him.

I hoped this was her shield at work and not some terrible mistake. Our friend, The Major, had fallen in love with the girl and if this went horribly wrong I knew we would lose him too. How much good she would be when she woke I couldn't imagine but if conscious her shield worked as well as this then we could hope for great things from it and at least no longer have to fear she would confuse friend and enemy, the worst case for a newborn in a battle situation.

We were fortunate to arrive at our destination without encountering any of Stefan's soldiers and I breathed a sigh of relief as I lay Bella on the ground, peaceful as she had been all the way. Peter and one of the Volturi guards disappeared immediately to check the area was secure while another guard, under orders from The Major, began to dig up the supplies Darius and he had hidden here ready to be used if needed so many years ago.

The third watched curiously as Charlie kissed his daughter goodbye and with my help began his own descent into hell. The sound of his torment cut through the stillness like a knife and I wondered if he would be useful or just another foe? If The Major and Peter had the time they could whip him into shape, just as they had done for Maria but time was our enemy too as Stefan and Vladimir crept ever closer to us.

Maria….trust her to work for the Romanians, they were as ruthless as she but she was without her best commander and Nathan was no Major even if he'd had more years to grow in experience. He was far too arrogant to learn from anyone unless Maria had beaten some sense into him since we left.

I wondered how The Major was holding up, so far from his mate and knowing she was undergoing the transformation even if like a kitten sleeping in the warm sunshine. I held her in my arms although I knew The Major would have much rather had her in his. His role was to command our small army and delegating was a part of that.

He might be in pain and missing her but he would never show it to anyone, he and the other commanders, Darius and Felix would be concentrating on getting to us without losing any men or giving away our position.

It had been years since Peter and I had fought in earnest yet I felt comfortable with the idea of battle. All I had been taught by The Major came back to me effortlessly and I was sure Peter would be equally as ready but then my husband was always ready for a fight, always had been, always would be, it was an integral part of his make-up. I did smile though when I remembered that this time the fight put him squarely on the Volturi's side and he had always despised Aro and his brothers. I hoped they were as good at fighting as they were ruling or we would all be dead very shortly and our world in the hands of the two madmen, Stefan and Vladimir.


	22. Chapter 22

**Chapter Twenty Two**

 **Stefan**

Our enemy had been located in the swamps of southern Louisiana, a strange choice as they had the sea to their backs and a vast expanse of the swamp before them, giving us room to set up ambushes and attack as and when we chose. It seemed odd but then if The Major was in control he had his reasons and until I figured them out our forces were going no further than they needed to pin his forces down. We had hoped Eleazar might come up with a powerful gift but those he discovered were petty, an ability to call up the rain, hardly a great help to us here where we were thigh deep in the water anyway! Another who could give an electric shock but it was too weak to incapacitate for more than a few seconds. As a result he was with us and the girls were still imprisoned but now in our castle in Romania, I didn't want anyone freeing them, after all once the Volturi and their rebel friends had been defeated there would be leisure to send Eleazar around the world looking for seriously gifted vampires who would be of some real use to us. Vladimir had been more disappointed in Eleazar's efforts than me and would have spit roasted him if I had not intervened. I pointed out that for now we had the numbers, the fighters and a few useful gifts, enough to win this war.

Maria's army of newborns had finally arrived and was desperate to fight, they didn't care who. The problem was that without an enemy they were happy to fight each other and we couldn't afford to lose too many of them to our own side! Deciding they would be better occupied looking for stragglers and watching posts Maria split them into units, each with a commander and sent them out on patrol.

"It would be foolish not to use their skills from the beginning Stefan, waiting around is bad for morale."

"We are only waiting until we know exactly where they are, then we will start harassing them."

"A war of attrition works for us and against them, it's a clever idea especially for the newborns, it keeps them busy doing what they like best, killing. However, I think the easiest way to draw out our opponents would be to start killing humans in numbers. Aro and the Volturi would hate bringing us into the sight of humans but even more importantly Carlisle and his group will bleed for the slain, it may even be they will come out of hiding and try to save some of the petty human cattle."

We had discussed this idea before and agreed that Carlisle would be terribly upset at the deaths but I doubted Aro would allow him to do anything as dangerously stupid as to put themselves at risk.

"For now, let's see what they intend doing. Perhaps they are waiting for the human girl to become a vampire so they can use her gift against us. That would play into our hands too, teaching a newborn control takes time, a time they can ill afford as it gives us the opportunity to tighten our grasp on our world."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that Stefan, you seem to forget they have The Major to help with that. It won't take him long to teach her enough control to use her gift….. provided of course that it proves to be useful. Not every gifted human becomes an invaluable vampire, there are those whose gift remains weak. You may have less time than you think."

Leaving her behind giving orders to the remainder of her army Vladimir and I took us off to speak in private. It annoyed us that Maria seemed to think she had a say in how this war was fought merely because she trained the soldiers.

"We may have to act against her once we have victory."

"No Vladimir, Maria will learn that her place in the new regime is not quite as she expected but she will be commander of the new Romanian guard…...until such time as we find someone more…..agreeable."

"Very well Stefan but I think she may have a point about slaughtering a few hundred humans. It would cut Carlisle in half, especially if Aro refuses to do anything to help them and anything that puts a wedge between our enemies is good for us."

I had no feeling for the human cattle but so close to victory I did not want to spread our forces too thinly.

"Come, Stefan, we have seen nothing of the brave Aro Volturi or The Major, we need to draw them out, give them a bloody nose, let Maria have her way, just for a little while."

When we told her of our decision she smiled like a lion who has just seen a wounded buffalo,

"I knew you would see things my way eventually. I will take some men and leave immediately. There may not be rich pickings here but there are various communities in these bayou's and of course our enemy has a channel for communication so any slaughter will soon get back to them. How long do I have?"

"A day, no more. Once you hit a settlement, cause enough deaths to be newsworthy then return, it may be that your pin prick will bring a response and we want the soldiers where they can do the most good.

Bring back dinner with you, missing communities will also tell a story and I'm becoming thirsty which I know is why our enemy chose this accursed spot."

"Not Aro, this was the work of The Major and his friends, I can feel it in my bones. I taught him well."

She looked pleased with herself as she turned and walked away, hips swinging provocatively.

 **Maria**

The Romanians had no idea how to make war in these conditions but I did. They were rusty and needed warriors like me to point them in the right direction. Of the two Vladimir was the most dangerous, the one with the quickest mind but for some reason he deferred to Stefan and I didn't quite understand why. Perhaps he had lost his edge over the centuries of inactivity or maybe he was just waiting his chance, perhaps he had plans that didn't include his dear friend, now that was worth a little more thought.

Gathering together some of my newborns who were already looking for trouble, arguing among themselves even more irritable than usual because they were thirsty. Nathan had gone off with some of those on patrol and I had to smile when I thought how angry and resentful he would be when he found out he'd missed all the fun.

As we left the camp I explained to my group of soldiers what our mission was and saw the smiles, now this is what they loved best, killing and feeding. Running fast it didn't take long for us to find our first victims although they weren't really worth bothering with, a small party of alligator hunters in a boat. Still it allowed my men to let off a little steam. We left the bodies in the boat and pushed it into the sluggish current, it may be found before it sank.

The small town I had identified as our real target came into view half an hour later just as the sun began to set and with a brief command my men split up and began their attack while I held back to assess them. The first screams rent the air a few seconds later as the first victims met their deaths. I had ordered that no buildings be destroyed, no fires set, just the humans were to be harmed, every one must be caught or hunted down if they attempted to run and slaughtered. Once my men had their fill of blood we would go hunting for prey to take back for the others.

By the time we turned back for base camp we had murdered the inhabitants of three small towns on the edge of the swamp and captured the inhabitants of another to take back with us.

They were terrified, huddled together, clinging to each other and thoroughly cowed. I had explained their predicament in simple enough language. If they behaved and came with us they would remain safe, true I didn't say for how long, that must have slipped my mind! If they attempted to escape they would be torn to pieces by my men. Of course, there was always one who refused to believe the threat or who had to try and his remains lay scattered over a large area of the swamp, ripped to pieces by my men, just as I had warned. There were enough here to feed everyone but we wouldn't be so lucky every time, not once news got out that "something" was hunting and killing in the swamps.


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter Twenty Three**

 **Carlisle**

For such a large party as ours was it was surprisingly well disciplined and it made me realize that I had never seen this side of Jasper. With us he was the man he always wanted to be, having buried his past, his time with Maria as a nightmare. Yet now he needed all those skills and the man he had tried to bury, to pretend never existed, The Major, was once again in control. I just hoped it wouldn't permanently scar him, becoming the monster once more. Aro was watching him closely, searching for any lack of confidence or hesitation but he was out of luck, The Major never questioned his decisions, I could see that and I was the furthest thing from a warrior there was. Our party made so little noise as we glided by that even the birds and animals in the swamp barely acknowledged our presence. It occurred to me that the alligators might be considering trying out vampire flesh and I hoped if so that they would be deterred by the menace we projected. Perhaps when others, our enemies, came this way they might decide to try their luck after all and help us out by biting chunks from them. It was a nice thought, only because it meant less for us to fight but I still hated the thought of all the lives that were going to be lost as this war continued and all those who had already perished.

It was a long way to our new base and the sun was rising again when we finally arrived to find the advance party waiting vigilant and on edge. Our party broke into smaller groups, some helping Darius to set up the equipment he had brought with him while checking what had already been done was working properly, some disappearing into the swamp again to set up sentry outposts and others drinking their fill of blood from bags in coolers and making faces at the cold glutinous liquid but no one complained, they knew better.

Jasper had gone to check on Bella while I joined Marcus who had moved over to gaze at Charlie who had been gagged tightly to stifle his screams and tied down to stop him thrashing so much. I felt guilty for his torture and pity too but what must be must be.

As I approached he turned to look at me with genuine curiosity,

"Do you think undergoing the transformation without the full agony of it will make any difference to a newborn who awakens Carlisle? I have often wondered if it was the pain we went through as our bodies died and were reanimated that caused the rage and control issues of new vampires."

"I have no idea Marcus and now is not the best time to make such discoveries, let's just hope your theory is correct. That way we won't have to watch our backs as well as what is before us."

"If it comes to that I will kill the newborns without hesitation, this is too important to allow such problems to threaten our success."

The way his gaze lingered on Charlie's body I knew that not only was he right but that he meant every word.

 **Darius**

It was going to be something of a miracle if we could pull victory out of this mess, we just didn't have the numbers or apart from a few of us, the experience. I was just glad we would have The Major with his full attention on the battle to come once Bella woke, and he was our best hope for victory, we needed him.

I filled him in on the current news then pointed out what I was sure he already knew.

"Major, we need a miracle if we're going to get out of this alive. I know Stefan's soldiers can't sneak up on us here but they don't need to, they can wait us out, we don't have blood supplies to feed everyone here for weeks and they are sure to start sneak attacks on our sentry posts."

"I know Darius, we are going to have to take the fight to them. Just keep watching and listening for a little while longer. Bella will be coming out of it soon and I have great hopes for her abilities, Charlie, too.

"Let's hope she's as controlled as she was quiet and that her gift has become stronger. We could do with some good news, I've had Aro breathing down my neck ever since I got set up, bitching about having undisciplined newborns in the camp."

"Yeah? Well, he might just find they are useful for his cause Darius. Call Peter and the leaders together in about an hour and we'll plan our next move."

 **Jasper**

I knew Darius was right, we had fewer men than I had hoped and even though the Volturi guard was experienced fighters and I could rely on my own friends we had more who would be little or no real use unless supervised and we didn't have the luxury of numbers to allow that.

I was concerned about Charlie myself but we'd had no choice and neither had he, it was a choice of arming him in the only way we could or watch him go down under a vampire attack. For now, I was more interested in Bella, every fibre of my being cried out to be back there with her for when she woke but I had people to talk to and plans to make. However, if she hadn't been peaceful I don't think I could have torn myself from her side, not even to plan strategy

Luckily I didn't have to work around my complex feelings for my mate for long, only an hour later I heard Charlotte's voice,

"Major, you'd better get over here, Bella's about to wake up."

Aro who had been talking with Felix, Marcus, and I stiffened and made to follow me.

"Leave it, Aro."

Marcus had put a restraining arm on his brother's shoulder and I nodded my thanks, he was the last person I wanted Bella to see when she woke to her new life.

When I arrived Bella was sitting up looking a little dazed while Charlotte was explaining to her everything that had happened.

"But I don't understand Charlotte, Edward told me how agonising the change would be, so did the others, yet I don't remember a thing. It's like I just woke up from a dream."

She saw me then and jumped to her feet surprising herself with her agility and ran into my arms.

"Jasper, I did it, I finally became a vampire but I think something must be wrong, I didn't feel any pain and it doesn't feel as if I've been unconscious for more than a few hours but Charlotte says it's been days."

She looked at me expectantly, her mind full of questions and strange feelings and I took the opportunity to explain.

"Bella, take a few seconds to process what you are feeling and listen to me. You've been unconscious for three days while we moved to a new location, Charlie is still out but he should be awake in a few hours too. Your shield protected you during the burn and we need to work on controlling it now you are a vampire but first I need to know if you are thirsty?"

She frowned then rubbed her throat self-consciously,

"Is that what this awful burning sensation is? Do I need to drink blood now? I'm not sure I can do that Jasper."

I took her hand and led her over to the dwindling supplies in the ice chests taking out a bag and offering it to her.

"I know human blood isn't what you want to drink but as we are going to be fighting very soon I don't have time to take you hunting and it would be dangerous anyway with the enemy all around. Once this is over I promise I will teach you to live on animal blood but for now…this is the only option. It will keep you satisfied and strong and believe me you are going to need all your strength if we are going to win this war.."

I waited as she weighed the bag in her hand. What would I do if she baulked? I had no idea and I had been telling the truth, we didn't have time for hunting expeditions.

Finally, she lifted the bag and tore a hole with her teeth then began to drink slowly at first but then as the taste hit her she drank more greedily. I offered her another but wiping her lips she shook her head peering in the half empty chest.

"We're getting low on supplies aren't we? Have I really been out that long?"

"Yes but I'm hoping we can use your shield to help us take on Stefan and Vladimir."

She nodded slowly,

"Me too."


	24. Chapter 24

**Chapter Twenty Four**

 **Jasper**

Bella suddenly grasped my arm hard enough to make the bones groan in protest,

"Charlie! I forgot my dad, is he OK?"

Like every newborn she was having difficulty focusing in on one thing so I reminded her that he would be waking soon and out of pain.

"I would have tried to help him but there was no time, he and you came on ahead of the main force for safety's sake."

She nodded seeming to understand why I had not been able to help Charlie then pulled me close breathing in deeply before touching her lips to my throat and I tensed, was she about to attack? Was I being careless? Letting my guard down with a newborn even if she was my mate?

When she suddenly stopped and pulled back I wasn't sure what to expect but then she smiled shyly,

"Sorry, I don't seem to be able to pin my emotions down, it's like being on a roller coaster. If I can't concentrate I'm not going to be much good to you am I?"

"Don't worry, you are on sensory overload right now but things will become easier. Take a few deep breaths and try to concentrate on just one thing."

I saw her eyes become dreamy and suddenly her emotion hit me like a freight train,

"Maybe not that emotion right now Bella. We really need to talk but it will still have to wait a while."

She nodded biting her lip nervously and I wanted to touch that mouth with mine, pull her close and submerge myself in her scent, the feel of her body, just as she had felt a similar urge.….Whoa boy! This wouldn't be helpful to either of us right now so I had to take my own advice and try focusing. Bella seemed to know my thoughts from that smile she gave me. Why did this have to happen now? In the middle of a war?

Then she straightened up looking over my shoulder and I recognised Felix step as he approached. He stopped before getting too near, he had enough experience of newborns not to push his luck but Bella had already lowered into a crouch ready to attack.

"It's OK Bella, Felix is with us."

She growled low in her chest then forced words out between clenched teeth,

"I remember you. When I visited Volterra, you tried to kill Edward."

The big Volturi grinned,

"If Aro had really wanted him dead, he would be. It was you I was supposed to kill if memory serves me right, Edward just decided to play the gallant knight."

"Yeah, shame he didn't keep it up."

Felix laughed,

"I take it you are no longer a fan of his? When I first met you I wondered what you saw in him."

Bella straightened up and Felix approached closer,

"Aro is getting impatient for news, he hates inactivity, especially when it makes it look as if he is hiding scared."

I nodded,

"Tell him we'll be along in a few minutes."

As Felix turned there was a strange whooshing noise and a flaming arrow dropped to the ground no more than five feet from him. It was followed by a strangled scream and then Peter appeared holding a struggling stranger who had a bow slung over one shoulder.

"Sorry, I didn't catch sight of him until he lit the fucking thing. Good thing he missed Felix or you'd have gone up like a Roman candle."

Felix picked up the guttering arrow and stared at it, then looked at me questioningly and I nodded in reply to his unspoken question. That arrow would have caught the big man in the centre of his chest if something hadn't stopped it, something neither of us had seen but had been strong enough to stop the projectile in mid-flight.

We both turned to look at Bella who stood wide-eyed and shaking slightly,

"I thought you were dead Felix, it came so close."

She didn't realize it was she who had saved Felix' life, her shield had snapped into place between him and the flaming arrow just in time. What a gift Bella possessed! If she could control it like that consciously we had all the weapon we could ever need.

Bella

When Jasper and Felix sat me down and explained what they thought had really happened I almost laughed out loud. How could the weak ability to stop Edward and Aro from reading my thoughts become something so powerful it could stop a missile in flight?

Felix even thanked me, taking my hand in his and kissing it,

"I owe you my life Isabella if there is ever a way I can repay that debt you have only to ask."

I tried to remonstrate with them, point out how insane their idea was and found I was becoming more and more uptight and annoyed that they refused to listen to me. Then suddenly there was a sound like a crack of thunder and I saw Jasper and Felix fly through the air to hit the twisted tree stumps on the opposite bank of the river which was somewhat wider than the creek from the old camp site.

I stood wide-eyed, had I really been responsible for that? Were they right and had I lashed out in my anger and thrown them through the air? How was that a shield? Surely a shield could not be an offensive weapon. Confused and unable to understand this new life I had woken to I fell to my knees wrapping my arms around myself and bowing my head in shame. How could I hit out at two men who were trying to keep me safe? One I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt would die for me.

"Felix, tell the others I need a little more time. We'll be along shortly. You can start the briefing, make sure we know as much as possible about the disposition of all Stefan's soldiers and separate the men into three groups."

I heard footsteps moving away but I couldn't look up, I felt so dreadful. Strong arms wrapped around me and I found myself lifted up until I was looking into Jasper's face, one hand holding my head up beneath my chin. He smiled but I could see he was troubled by my actions.

"Bella, there's nothing to be ashamed of, you have done so well as a newborn, I'm proud of you. Most are so filled with rage and thirst they can't even speak or stop themselves from attacking whoever is close to them. You are different, special."

His lips met mine and we kissed my head whirring with so many conflicting emotions I thought I would never be able to think straight again.

 **Jasper**

Now was really not the right time for this but I couldn't help myself, I just had to kiss her and I felt her responding to the action by kissing me back. I could have stayed like this forever, Bella locked in my embrace but I pulled free with an effort just as I heard a loud snarl in the distance. Bella froze, eyes wide,

"Is it an attack?"

"Of a kind, it sounds like your father is awake and unlike you, he is acting just like a regular newborn. Come on, seeing you might just calm him a little."

We ran over to where a fight was in progress, Felix and Demetri were attempting to hold on to Charlie who had his sights set on Edward who it appeared had already tasted a little of Charlie's anger by the dishevelled look of his clothes and the hand he was holding to the wrist as it fusing back.

"Coward, get back here you slimy little bastard. I'll show you what it means to treat my daughter like a piece of crap."

I smiled, well if Charlie had to find a target for his newborn rage then Edward was a pretty good choice in my opinion. Carlisle and Aro ran up and while I held Bella out of Charlie's reach she began to soothe him while Carlisle checked on Edwards injury. Aro was scowling at Charlie and I knew he didn't believe I could bring him under control quickly enough for him to be useful against the Romanians but then I didn't really give a shit what he thought.


	25. Chapter 25

**Chapter Twenty Five**

 **Bella**

I wasn't sure whether to be shocked or amused by dad's reaction to Edward, I had known he hated my ex-boyfriend for the damage he did to me but to see him ready to attack Edward was something of a shock even so. I began speaking to him, drawing his attention away from Edward and to me and when it registered I was awake and fine he calmed and shrugging free of Jasper's grasp I put my arms around him. I knew I was taking a risk, everyone had drummed into me how dangerous newborns could be I didn't believe my dad would attack me and I was right.

Instead, he returned the hug although I could feel how tense he was.

"I don't know how I expected to feel when I woke up a vampire but I didn't expect to have every damn emotion clamouring for attention at once and this damn burning in my throat is driving me mad."

Remembering my own thirst I pulled him over towards the ice chests and handed him a blood bag. He didn't hesitate once he smelled it and ripped it open gulping the contents down in seconds and snatching a second one up which followed almost as quickly. I stopped him after the third knowing how low stocks were and he let me although I could see his anger at being thwarted.

Jasper and Carlisle joined us and Charlie tensed again but his thought processes were clearer now his thirst was quenched.

"Sorry for attacking your son Carlisle but when I slapped eyes on him…."

"I understand Chief, it's difficult to control our emotions when we are new vampires but it would be helpful if you could concentrate that rage on our enemies for now."

Dad nodded looking not at Carlisle but the ground as if a little abashed,

"So long as I can find an outlet for my tension I'll be OK."

"You'll do exactly as I tell you, Charlie if not then I'll have no choice but to kill you myself. Is that understood? We can't take chances with a loose cannon in our midst when we are surrounded by enemies."

I was shocked at Jasper's words but Aro was smiling, I bet he was just loving all this aggression and ill temper.

"Just who the fuck do you think you are giving me orders, boy?"

Jasper's movements were a blur even to me but he had my dad on the ground, an arm stretched out behind him with Jasper's knee in the centre of his back and his teeth dangerously close to dad's throat. His words were very quiet but held so much menace I felt myself shiver.

"I'm The Major and you are a lowly foot soldier. You do as you are ordered or I will kill you, no warnings, no second chances. I will not let you put the rest of us at risk, do you understand?"

We waited, all eyes on the frozen tableau before us. Would Charlie accept Jasper's words or would he fight? If he fought Jasper would kill him, even if I were watching, he had no choice after throwing down the gauntlet. After a minute which felt like an hour Charlie nodded,

"Understood."

Slowly Jasper released his hold on my dad and stepped back still ready to react should Charlie retaliate but he didn't.

Instead, he got to his feet and brushed off his clothes before nodding,

"You're in command…. for now."

"You got that right Chief now I suggest you spend some time with Peter and some of the others, find out what that new body of yours is capable of. You're gonna need the moves if you intend surviving the battle."

I heaved a sigh of relief as Charlie moved off with Peter and three of the Volturi guard, all eager to give him a few pointers on vampire battle tactics.

"Don't worry Bella, your dad is going to work out just fine, he just needed the boundaries drawn for him."

I glanced over at dad listening intently to Peter's words and sighed,

"I hope so because it's my fault he's in this mess and I just get to sail through everything."

"Not everything, you need to work on controlling your gift. You did it instinctively earlier and saved Felix' life, now what caused that reaction? Whatever it was we need to work on it. You might be the only thing standing between us and defeat."

I felt the weight of Jasper's words on my shoulders and knew he hadn't said that merely for effect. I wasn't stupid, I'd heard enough to understand we were vastly outnumbered and even great tactics were no guarantee against overwhelming odds.

I had wanted to step in when Jasper attacked Charlie but I couldn't. If I had done that it would have ruined everything, devaluing Jasper's authority in the camp and it would have fed my dad's lack of respect for his commander. These men looked up to Jasper as their leader, he had earned that respect but if I had taken it away by stopping him from exercising that command then they would have turned away from him, if not to me as the one who had embarrassed him then to Aro or Marcus, Felix even and I knew in my heart there was only man who could guide us through this with any chance of success.

We all gathered together for a first real briefing, Darius explained the Romanians were bringing vast numbers of fighters to the party, as he put it, too many for us to hope to overcome.

"What we need is a fuckin' nuke."

Aro scowled at Peter's idea but Jasper nodded,

"Yes Peter, that's exactly what we need, something that will blow them off the face of the earth for good and we might just have such a weapon but only if we can find out where Stefan's headquarters is. We all know he and Vladimir won't be in the thick of the fighting until the very end, just to deliver the coup de grace."

"Even if you discover the whereabouts of their headquarters how do you intend getting inside? They aren't just going to let you wander in and kill them."

"No, Heidi they aren't which is where Bella comes in. Her shield works, we saw that when she saved Felix' life. It's powerful as a weapon too but what we need is a way to get inside the Romanian headquarters without being discovered using Bella as a kind of super-powered Renata."

Aro turned to the space where Renata had always stood but it was empty, I'd heard she ran terrified and no one saw her again. She was alive no doubt, in hiding and hoping she wouldn't be discovered and become the pawn of one of the new leaders, or Aro's once more if the rebels won.

"You think I can shield you? Allow you to get into Stefan's headquarters unseen? That's a big ask Jasper, shielding my mind is one thing, shielding others from view is another thing entirely."

Jasper grasped my hand comfortingly,

"I know you can do it, Bella, you just need to practice."

"There might be a slight fly in the ointment here Major."

It was Darius and he was studying one of the computer screens intently.

"Go on."

"I think we are about to be attacked by a large group coming in from the north. It's not the main event but it's going to keep us occupied for a while."

Jasper nodded, not looking particularly worried by the news,

"Right, Rosalie, Demetri, Sulpicia I want you three to stay with Bella, start training, we need her shield up and working pronto. Charlie, you come with me, I'll give you plenty of fighting just try to stay alive, for my sake. Bella will kill me if I let you get killed."

My dad had a smile on his face and I realized he was looking forward to this. There was enough newborn rage and arrogance in him that he didn't see any danger just a way to let out his pent up aggression and I didn't want to put him off so I just said a "quick goodbye and good luck" to him and kissed Jasper again before tearing myself away, going deeper into the swamp with my three tutors hoping Jasper was justified in his faith in me.

We went further than I thought necessary but Demetri refused to stop until he decided we were safe from any fallout from the fighting. I had no idea how to make my shield appear or how to control it once I did but Sulpicia explained what Renata had told her about her own shield gift.

"She said she imagined it as a huge clear bubble that wrapped around her and whoever she touched. So long as she could visualize it then it would work to protect."

"But she had centuries to perfect it, I've got maybe hours."

"Then stop whining and get on with it girl. I don't want to be here playing nursemaid to you while my friends are busy fighting and dying, neither do the others."

Demetri's words infuriated me and suddenly he flew backwards to end up impaled by a branch twenty feet away and ten foot in the air. I felt exultant as well as ashamed and while he pulled himself free and healed I tried closing my eyes and visualizing the bubble to calm myself.

At first I could only see it as a gleaming glass fist that would shoot out and hit my enemy in the centre of the chest blasting them away but that wasn't going to help us get into Stefan's HQ unnoticed and as Rosalie pointed out I couldn't use it to blast everyone who would be attacking us.


	26. Chapter 26

**Chapter Twenty Six**

 **Jasper**

The attack when it came was well executed and if not for Darius giving us plenty of warning we would have lost more men, as it was we lost more than we could afford. Our battle groups stuck together cohesively which meant they protected each other against the onslaught of the newborns sent against us. I could see Maria's hand in this, they were well drilled and maintained discipline almost to the end. Their superior strength and speed was well used but we had the skills that come with long experience and that helped tremendously.

Aro and Marcus were both good fighters if a little rusty and even Charlie was making his mark, I saw several of the enemy die at his hands. Some of our party, the least experienced had been charged with firing any body parts they found, a sure way to stop the enemy reassembling in the swamps behind us later although it carried a possible cost to our own side if limbs from one of our own fighters were destroyed, but for now ensuring any kills were permanent was more important to us.

I hadn't expected to see Stefan or Vladimir among the fighters, or even Maria but I was pleased when I saw Nathan battling Emmett and a Volturi guard. I wanted him for myself but my place was in the thick of it taking on fighters that others could not and Emmett seemed to have Nathan under control for now.

The numbers were greater than I had anticipated, either the Romanians had more fighters than we expected or they were eager to get this over with and rest on their laurels. This made the fight longer and more violent than I had expected for a first encounter and I wondered how many of our own we would find dismembered, burned or just missing at the end of the battle.

By the time it was over the air was thick with smoke and the scent of burned vampire flesh and the cries of the injured and dying were the only sounds to be heard. The remainder of the opposition melted away at a signal from their leader Nathan, who had escaped Emmett and the Volturi, hopefully leaving both alive to fight again.

I called my men to me, Peter grabbing Charlie who was ready to chase after the survivors, dragged him, still struggling, back to join the others. I looked around, there were gaps in our ranks but fewer than I had feared then I checked off friends and family, Carlisle and Esme were in an embrace with Emmett and looked unharmed but Edward had fared worse, he was holding a detached arm with a hand missing several fingers and I wondered if we would find them. If not his days playing the piano might well be over.

Heidi was among the missing along with two of our friends Maisie and Ben, dead and destroyed. Darius was busy on the computer tracking the enemy back to their own camp about forty miles away on the edge of the swamp but there was no sign that the Romanians were there too.

"Hey Major, look who just came to give her troops a pep talk."

I glanced at the screen to see Maria holding a debriefing much like my own. She looked annoyed and I guessed she had lost more soldiers than she wanted. Nathan was going to bear the brunt of her anger at that, in the same way I did when I trained her army. Her presence meant that she would most likely accompany any further raids and I looked forward to ending the bitch's life personally.

Aro was pleased we hadn't lost any experienced fighters and even congratulated Charlie on his fighting skills which pleased Bella's father. I wondered if he had worried he might not be good enough to take on experienced vampires in a fight? If so he had hidden the feeling well because I hadn't detected anything.

I saw Esme join Carlisle and Edward hunting for his missing digits and suddenly felt sorry for my "brother", he had lost the girl and now he might have lost his other love, music.

I waited impatiently with my commanders, deciding on where we could improve on our tactics for the next attack for Bella to come back but it was almost six hours before I saw the small party make their way back into camp and Demetri looked a little the worse for wear. I assumed he had upset Bella in some way or had been the one chosen to be cloaked by her gift from the attack of the rest. Either way, none of them looked particularly happy and I knew the first lesson had not gone well.

Once we had finished talking I left Aro and Marcus, along with Felix, to speak to Demetri, while I rushed over to comfort my mate who looked so downcast.

"I can't do it Jasper, I know how important it is for our side but I can't get a shield to work and I tried so hard. I can use my gift as a weapon, poor Demetri has more holes in his body than a sieve but I can't see it as a shield."

Her eyes were almost black she was so thirsty so I took over to the ice chests noting that the supplies were now dangerously low, everyone had been drinking to regain their strength after the battle.

Once she had drunk two bags I took her for a walk away from the rest of the camp hoping she might start to relax a little.

"Bella, you are doing all you can. I had no right to put such pressure on you in the first place. We will find another way into the Romanians headquarters."

"Has Darius found it yet?"

I hesitated, should I lie and say no?

"Yes, just a few minutes ago. It's heavily defended but I think a small force might manage to slip past the guards. I plan on taking Peter, Felix, Demetri, Charlotte, and Emmett with me tomorrow night."

She gripped my arm tightly,

"You'll never do it Jasper, you'll all be killed or captured."

I pulled her close kissing her hair and calming her emotions which were in turmoil.

"I have no choice Bella. If we don't chop the head of this beast off it will destroy all I love. Enslave those I care about and plunge the world into a nightmare existence it may never recover from."

She tried to talk me out of my plan but I stopped further discussion of it by changing the subject.

"It seems we may never have our quiet time to have that conversation, the gods are against us."

She shook her head,

"No, our time will come. I will learn to control my gift, to turn it from a weapon into a shield but I need time Jasper."

I kissed her very gently tasting the sweetness of her mouth,

"Time is the one thing we do not have darlin'".

She pulled free, determination and obstinacy on her face,

"We do have time. I have until tomorrow night so I can't waste time now, if I do then I may lose you forever and I couldn't bear that thought."

Before I could answer her she had gone taking a bemused Rosalie and Emmett with her. I hesitated, wanting to follow but then I heard my name called, the Volturi leaders wished to speak to me so I forced myself to let her go with my blessing and my hopes.

 **Bella**

I took Rosalie and Emmett back to the place we had been earlier for my abortive attempt to use my shield. If I wanted a life with Jasper, free in a world not dominated by monsters then I had to succeed and I explained as much to my friends before we started once more.

My biggest problem was that I didn't entirely believe my gift was a shield.

"'That's because you've only experienced it as a weapon since you became a vampire Bella but when we first met you Edward was really pissed he couldn't read your thoughts and that wasn't because you threw him out, you stopped him getting in. You need to think of it as an invisible wall you can put up in an instant to stop something from touching you."

Emmett was making more sense than Sulpicia and Demetri had before and I tried thinking of this invisible wall.

"Try to imagine Edward is creeping up on you and you don't want his spooky little fingers touching you."

I couldn't help giggling at the picture Emmett was conjuring in my mind. Then I heard a rustling noise and turned thinking I would see Emmett creeping up on me but instead it was Edward and he looked furtive babbling something about looking for his missing fingers.

"This far out Edward? What? Do you think they are trying to hide from you?"

Edward scowled at Rosalie,

"OK, I just wanted to see how Bella was doing, she's been avoiding me."

I nodded smiling brightly,

"You're right Edward I have but maybe you can help us, it might make me dislike you a little less, who knows?"

He looked eager to help and I thought with a pang that he really did want to get back into my good books.


	27. Chapter 27

**Chapter Twenty Seven**

 **Jasper**

There was an argument raging when I joined Darius, Charlie had heard there was going to be a raid on the Romanian headquarters and he wanted in on it while Aro and Marcus objected to that idea as way too dangerous. Not only that, they wanted to be included, annoyed I had picked Felix and neither of them. I guess I'd been lucky up to now with two such large ego's content to sit back and let me give the orders but now was crunch time.

"The group will be small, we cannot afford the risk of losing too many and that includes you and Marcus, Aro."

"If it is so dangerous why are you attempting it at all?"

"Because if we sit here and allow the Romanians to bring the battle to us we will fail. They have all the advantages, we need to hit them hard and fast."

"And you think you stand a chance of taking out either or both of them with this sneak attack?"

"Yes, I do if we can find a way inside without being discovered. Which is another reason why neither of you is going. You are far too well known to pass unnoticed."

"Surely the same argument holds true for yourself?"

"Actually, no, my name is famous while my face is not."

"Unless you run into your old mistress that is."

I nodded at Aro's observation.

"Yes but she isn't there. Maria likes to keep an eye on her soldiers, especially as she doesn't trust Nathan as she did me, so if you gentlemen have no more questions we need to plan our action."

I waited in silence until they turned to walk away but then Marcus turned back,

"And the newborn? Isn't it folly to take him with you?"

"Yes, so Charlie will be staying here."

He opened his mouth to object but I talked over him,

"Either of his own accord or hog tied, the choice is his."

Darius grinned at me as all three disgruntled men stalked off,

"Well handled Major, for a minute there I thought Aro was going to pull rank on you."

"Not here, he knows he needs me and my strengths so he'll hold his peace for now."

"Charlie looked fit to punch you."

"He can try."

I know it sounded arrogant but I didn't care, I was just telling it the way it was.

"Have you found a way in yet?"

He rubbed his chin and waggled the other hand,

"Possibly but it's not foolproof, do you think Bella might be ready by the time we leave?"

"I hope so but if not we go without her. We can't just sit here while they strengthen their hold on our world and continue to slaughter humans by the hundred."

"Could be curtains for us without her."

"Which is why you are staying here. They'll need eyes and ears even more if anything happens to me. I need someone to watch over Bella too."

"Bella won't survive without you, Major."

"She will, we haven't consummated our relationship and she's new, it will be hard but with your help, she can get through it. Teach her, the way you survived Sara's death."

I had expected him to complain about being left behind but unlike Peter, he would see the wisdom of my words without having it spelt out to him.

"You're right about the massacres Major. I got news reports of three towns in different states bordering Louisiana where all the inhabitants have been murdered, the town's **burned to the ground** to hide how the people were killed."

"That's to keep their army fed and it will only get worse, another reason to move quickly. Once they destroy us the humans will be murdered indiscriminately and they won't bother to hide the manner of their death."

Darius didn't answer just nodded, he knew I was right, Stefan didn't care about the humans and Vladimir was even worse, he would enjoy the thought that the humans were running scared because they knew vampires were preying on them.

Even though they knew we wouldn't believe them the Romanians sent us a message, the chance of making a bargain with them. If we gave up Aro and Marcus we would be allowed to leave and continue with our lives free of threats and the slaughter of the humans would stop.

"Some chance of that happening."

"True Darius, but we'd better tell Aro or he'll think we might be considering the bargain, you know how paranoid he is."

I took the print out from his hand and went off to find our illustrious guests who were busy with Carlisle, probably trying to convince him that they should be making the decisions not me. Maybe I was the paranoid one but they stopped speaking when they saw me approach.

"Major, come to give us more words of wisdom?"

"Actually, I have a proposition from Stefan and Vladimir you might be interested in seeing."

Aro snatched the paper from my hand and scanned it before sneering and passing it to Marcus.

"Lies, all of it. They won't stop killing humans, they have an army to feed and they aren't going to disband that any time soon and as soon as you hand us over they would fall on you like a pack of rabid dogs, they'd kill you all. Stefan never could stand traitors like you Major, or Carlisle here and Vladimir is even more paranoid."

"I'm aware of that, did you think I might consider their offer? Do I look that stupid Aro? I just thought you'd feel better knowing I told you I'd received one."

I left them muttering and went to find Bella if she was going to help us tomorrow we needed a breakthrough and I wanted to offer my help but before I could get out of the camp I was waylaid by Charlie once more.

"Jasper….."

"No Charlie, for the last time you aren't going, you'd be a liability."

"Peter tells me that you plan on taking Bella though. Do you think she will be any safer? It's irresponsible, you have no idea how strong this gift of hers is, she doesn't even know what it is or how to handle it. I won't let you risk my daughter's life in a foolhardy expedition that will probably get her killed."

"Have you finished?"

He glared at me baring his teeth in barely suppressed fury.

"For now."

"Good. I have no intention of taking Bella on this suicide mission unless she has learned to control her shield. You may not believe this but I love your daughter and I will do everything I can to keep her safe so taking her into danger is the last thing on my mind unless I think she can protect herself."

He studied my face intently for a minute then relaxed a little and nodded curtly,

"OK, good but you'd better stick to that Jasper or I'll rip your lying tongue out and burn it and that's just for starters."

I knew he meant it, just as I knew he could never make good on the threat, he may be a newborn but he was no match for me.

Suddenly Darius shouted for me and as I approached his hut I could see most of the others had crowded round to find out what had upset him so much. I pushed through and grabbed him by the arm.

"What is it?"

He turned horror filled eyes to look at me,

"They're fucking crazy."

"That's not news Darius, talk to me."

"They're going to attack the camp, I only just caught the transmission. Major, somehow they've got their hands on a Thermobaric bomb and a plane to deliver it."

"A thermo….what? Darius talk fucking English."

I turned to Peter,

"Thermobaric, it's a fuel air bomb. It detonates in the air releasing a cloud of explosive material which is ignited by a second explosion, and as you can imagine if it does then we are all dead."

"How long do we have Darius?"

"Not long Major, I caught the conversation between Vladimir and the pilot. Our only hope is to get into the swamp and stay under the water as deep as we can for as long as we can."

"It's a fucking good job we don't need to breathe then isn't it?"

I heard the sound of a plane coming in low over the swamps as Peter spoke and shouted for everyone to take cover, at the same time I looking around for a clue as to where Bella and the others had gone. They wouldn't know what was coming and would be caught out in the open and burned alive. I began to run calling her name when I was tackled from behind and crashed into the river, a weight still on my back as we sank like a stone to the bottom.


	28. Chapter 28

**Chapter Twenty Eight**

 **Bella**

We were still getting nowhere although I had thought having Edward try to attack me would be motivation enough. It seemed he was enjoying himself far more than me. I was frustrated and angry with myself as I pushed him off for what seemed like the twentieth time.

"I don't think it's going to work Emmett, I just can't do it."

I screamed in frustration and Edward went flying to smash against the only tree still standing. Rose clapped her hands in delight and to give me some encouragement but hurling my opponents into the air wasn't going to help us get inside the Romanian headquarters and I knew that with my "shield" or without Jasper was going to attack. How would I live with myself if he died because I failed him?

We heard a lot of noise coming from the area of the camp and I wondered if there was another attack going on right now but then I heard Jasper shout my name before being cut off suddenly, There were splashes, a lot of them, were the others taking part in a mass swim? What was going on?

I looked at Emmett who was watching a looming dark shape in the sky then Edward shouted,

"Fuck, it's an air attack."

I was taken aback, I'd never heard Edward swear before and then there was an explosion and a liquid came raining down on us. I smelled an accelerant and understood what was going on, we were being attacked just as Edward said. I'd watched a documentary with Phil on the use of air fuel bombs and recognised this was one. We were about to fry and there was nothing we could do about it. I was full of rage, how could the Romanians do this to us? I would never get a chance to tell Jasper I loved him or be held in his arms, it wasn't fair.

I screamed in rage as the others turned to the river knowing they were already too late to save themselves and then came the second explosion and there was a horrifying boom as the accelerant caught raining fire down on us.

 **Jasper**

I struggled with the figure on my back but he was joined by others, holding me down as the water above us boiled and a bright light lit up everything. As it darkened again I stopped fighting, there was no point now, it was too late. Bella, Rosalie, and Emmett had been there on solid ground when the bomb went off, they hadn't stood a chance and there would be nothing left of my beautiful mate. I hadn't had a chance to talk to her about how I felt, how my life was bound up with hers, how I would die for her. We had never held each other's naked bodies and felt the ecstasy of becoming one and we never would now.

Peter dragged me back to the surface once it was over and I saw heads bobbing in the water all around us. Darius had given us just enough warning that we were able to take cover. Pulling away from Peter I climbed onto the bank looking around at the utter destruction all around.

There was nothing, no hut, no signs of habitation, even the soaking vegetation was black and crisp, disintegrating into ash as I touched it. Ash, that was all that would be left of Bella and the others, no bodies, nothing to grieve over. I could already feel the pain of knowing I had lost my mate and I vowed that I would see the Romanian's die screaming for that, along with Maria who would revel in my loss. The pain became too much and I fell to my knees clenching my fists in anguish.

 **Bella**

At first I couldn't believe it but we were all alive and not only that but unharmed while all around us was utter devastation. Emmett and Rose were clutching each other while Edward looked at me with a mixture of shock and awe.

"Wha….what happened?"

He ran to me picking me up and spinning me round, a huge grin on his face,

"You did it Bella. All you needed was a good reason to bring your shield out. You saved me…...you saved all of us. We'd be a pile of ashes if not for your shield. Well done, I knew you were special."

I was stunned but not so stunned that I didn't object to him kissing me. I punched him in the chest and he staggered back as I began to run. My shield had saved our lives but what about the others? What about Jasper? Esme and Carlisle? Charlie? They had all depended on me getting my shield working and I had let them down, while I stayed safe they were burned to death. I couldn't bear the thought of that and ran back through the blackened vegetation becoming covered in black soot and ash, the greasy residue of the fuel the bomb had ignited.

As I reached the camp, or where it had stood, I stopped unable to believe my eyes. Dripping figures stood looking around as if unable to believe their eyes, just like me. My eyes ran across the faces, where was Jasper? He would have been the very last to save himself? Had he been too late? I couldn't see his familiar figure and then my attention stopped at a figure kneeling down, fists clenched making noises like a wounded animal and recognised him.

"Jasper? Thank God."

His head whipped up, blond hair swinging like rats tails and I thought he had never looked so wonderful.

In seconds, we were in each other's arms hugging and kissing in. relief as I tried to tell him what had happened through an emotion clogged throat. He stopped me with his lips and lifting my off the ground began to run.

 **Peter**

I had expected a fight when we got back on the dry ground but The Major just seemed to sag then fall to the ground with a noise like a wounded animal. I started forward but Charlotte held me back,

"Leave him, Peter. There's nothing you can do now. There's nothing anyone can do, Bella's gone."

I shook my head, it didn't feel like she was gone, I wasn't getting that fucking awful feeling I got when something had gone seriously fucking wrong. Then I saw her and sent up a silent prayer to the God of Old Cowboys. He took off with her and we both knew now was not the time to go after them so instead, I found Darius staring at a heap of melted plastic and metal that had once been his equipment.

"Well, that was a close fucking shave, maybe next time you can give us a little more warning?"

Darius didn't answer, he looked bleak,

"They'll be coming to see how much damage they've done. We need to be ready for them and I have no way of knowing which way they'll approach."

"Then we need to get the others into groups and out watching for the slimy little fuckers. I tell you one thing, they'll be really fucking pissed when they find out we ain't crispy critters."

He smiled cynically,

"Let's see how warm a welcome we can give them in return shall we?"

That's when I noticed the cans of fuel for the emergency generator which he had grabbed before he jumped into the river.

"Now that's what I call good forward planning my friend."

With no Major to give orders Darius and I took over much to the annoyance of Aro and Marcus but guess what…...we didn't give a shit! We split the company into small groups each with a small container of gas and instructions to make arrows or javelins to give our guests a warm welcome when they arrived. I grabbed Edward for my group and grilled him about what had happened as we waited.

"So, Bella finally got her ass into gear. That shield sounds like it's gonna be just what we need."

"We still don't know it can hide you from view, only that it can protect from weapons, or some at least."

I rolled my eyes, he really was one thick wicket!

"Sonny boy, if she can stop us from getting our asses toasted it won't matter a fuck if they can see us or not. We can stroll right into their headquarters and take them out just like this."

I snapped my fingers then motioned for him to be quiet. He nodded, we'd both heard them coming. Putting his mouth to my ear he whispered low,

"Six of them, newborns by their thoughts. They're supposed to be checking for survivors."

"Shame to leave them wandering around looking for us, come on Eddie boy, let's introduce ourselves."

Moments later our group of "guests" were roasting nicely and from the smell in the air, we weren't the only ones having a barbecue.


	29. Chapter 29

**Chapter Twenty Nine**

 **Jasper**

I couldn't go another minute without telling Bella what she meant to me, before taking her as my mate, war be damned! I found a quiet spot away from the devastation and laid her down gently on the damp ground.

"I thought I'd lost you darlin'"

"Me too. How could they do that? We could all have been killed by that attack, it was barbaric!"

"The Romanians are barbarians but forget about them for now. God Bella, I love you and the thought I might never get to hold you again was killing me."

"Me too, I felt so guilty that I saved our small group but I let the rest of you down."

"You saved them?"

She nodded smiling widely,

"I didn't do it deliberately, it just happened. I guess the thought of losing my friends did the trick. We just stood there and the fire never reached us, it was like we were below a glass dome that kept us safe. I can do it, Jasper, I can shield us. We can win this war and I'm determined that we will."

I didn't give her time to say any more, I needed her so badly my whole body was shaking. It wasn't the most romantic of places for the first time but neither of us could wait or cared. Clothes were hurriedly pulled off and I didn't even take the time to look at my mate's beautiful body,

I needed to make her mine and I did. I took her single-mindedly and she pulled me inside her as if she wanted to devour me whole. I felt her gasp as I slid inside her, Bella was a virgin so I would have to use my venom to ensure she didn't heal again or every time would be like the first and I didn't want to give her pain, only pleasure.

We moved together, too desperate to take our time and I felt myself building up to a climax way too soon. Difficult as it was I took control enough to make sure Bella orgasmed over and over, helped in part by my gift, feeding her some of my own intense pleasure before finally, being able to control myself no longer I exploded inside her and we fell in a tangle of limbs both satiated for the moment.

After a few minutes, she began to stir, stroking my body from knee to belly causing me to groan as I became aroused again.

"Bella, I'm sorry this wasn't comfortable and romantic. This isn't the way I wanted our first time to be."

She leaned over to kiss me, her breasts crushed against my chest,

"I don't care Jasper. I needed you and you needed me. There will be time for the romance later, once we kill those Romanian bastards."

I smiled, I liked the vampire, Bella, even more than the human I had fallen in love with.

"I guess we should be getting back."

She sighed and attempted to get up but I pulled her back down to lay on top of me,

"They can wait, just a little longer darlin', I can't."

When we finally parted reluctantly and dressed ready to join the others it was dawn and we had the campaign to plan if Peter and Darius hadn't already done so. Holding hands we strolled back into camp to the wolf whistles and bawdy comments from our friends and family. Charlie looked less than pleased but that couldn't be helped, then Bella tugged my arm and whispered in my ear.

"Jasper, let Charlie come with us tonight. I know you think he's too hot headed but with my shield, if I can make it work again and I feel really confident now, he'll be safe enough and he won't put anyone else at risk. I understand why you've ridden him so hard but please, for me."

I thought about it, I had been hard but he was a newborn, it was all he understood. Still, Bella had backed me so far and I couldn't see any harm in him going along if he could behave. I'd ask Peter to keep a close eye on him.

"OK. So long as he follows orders he can come."

We found Darius jury rigging some kind of satellite link with Marcus and as we joined them the screen of Darius cell phone lit up with a small scene of the Romanian camp.

"Major! Glad to have you back, we thought maybe you'd forgotten all about our little problem."

Aro scowled as he appeared from the trees the sarcasm heavy in his voice.

"Well, I'm here now Aro. Darius, how does it look?"

My friend turned to me with a slight smile on his face,

"The one thing I like about Stefan and Vladimir is their unquenchable over-optimism. It seems they were so confident their air attack would work that they decided to come and watch.

They are in that building there."

He pointed to one of two small structures standing on the bank of the swamp about a hundred miles to the north of our present position.

"It'll be like taking candy from a baby, provided Bella still has the strength to get it up that is."

Bella frowned at him and he winked conspiratorially,

"Your shield darlin', your shield."

 **Charlie**

It was obvious what my daughter and that upstart who called himself The Major had been doing and I was outraged. Deciding to confront the bastard I started to follow them only t9o find myself pulled back into the long grass surrounding our camp by Emmett and Edward.

"Let go of me."

"I think you should cool off Chief Swan or you might just force Jasper to make good on his earlier threat. You haven't forgotten that have you?"

I was shocked that Edward would be taking his side,

"You know what they've been doing? Don't you feel in the least bit jealous? Bella was your girlfriend after all."

"Yes, a boyfriend you heartily disapproved of if memory serves me right Chief. I lost Bella's love through my own stupidity but I have no intention of losing her as a…... friend. We need to work together and you need to calm down and listen to us. If we're going to win this war we will only do it with Jasper's help, he is the best at what he does, command men and bring them back alive."

"Oh yeah? He sounds like the fucking Lone Ranger or some such shit. I never saw him do anything particularly menacing."

"You should thank your lucky stars for that Chief. I'm going to tell you a bit about my "brother". Maybe then you'll understand why you need to shut your mouth and listen to him."

I stood arms folded, impatient as Edward began speaking, Emmett watching me closely as if suspecting I might make a run for it. I could but what would be the point? Jasper had everyone else eating out of his hand, with perhaps the exception of the two Volturi leaders but even they deferred to him in the end. As Jasper's story unfolded I began to listen more carefully, so he really was the bad ass commander he was portrayed as it wasn't just a hard man reputation and a sprinkling of belligerence.

"So you see Chief, you listen to him, you might just learn a thing or two. Don't put him in a position where you force him to act against you because he will, however, much it might upset Bella."

We joined the others just as Jasper was about to start the briefing although I very much doubted I would be going along on the raid. I'd made a complete dick of myself so why should he trust me to follow orders? When he named the raiding party I was amazed to hear my name among the others and looked over to see Bella smile at me encouragingly. Had she put in a good word for me? I found a few minutes after the briefing to sit and talk to her alone, Jasper having gotten together with Darius to check out the area around the Romanian headquarters.

"I guess I have you to thank for my inclusion in tonight's little shindig?"

"I just suggested you might be better if you got a chance to prove yourself, that's all. Please, dad, don't mess up, it could get us all killed."

I took her hand and smiled encouragingly,

"Hey, with you as my ambassador I'd be an idiot to ruin things. I don't want the Romanians to stay in charge, not after that trick with the bomb, they're psycho's and I heard Darius telling Carlisle how many humans they are already responsible for slaughtering. I'm more worried about you Bells. Are you sure this shield of yours will work? I don't want you in danger otherwise."

"Sure? No, but I have to try. If we can't get at the leaders quickly this war will rage on indefinitely and that's an even worse thought. I protected us from that bomb, I can do it again. I'm just not sure I can make us invisible which would be the best outcome."

"You want to practice on your old dad?"

She hesitated then Edward appeared grinning.

"How about a little help Bella? I promise not to try kissing you again."

She snorted as he rubbed his chest then nodded,

"Why not, let's see if I can teach you a new version of blind man's buff."


	30. Chapter 30

**Chapter Thirty**

 **Jasper**

Bella had quite an audience as she made her first attempt to consciously shield herself at first and when that was too easy, to shield others. At first, it was difficult, only someone very close to her physically was sheltered almost like someone holding an umbrella up for a friend. Emmett, Edward, and Charlotte agreed to test her shield as she attempted to extend it to reach further from her. They started off with simple things like mud balls and Bella and her friends were liberally splattered with mud before the missiles finally started splattering thin area between throwers and her small party comprising Esme, Rosalie, and much to my surprise Sulpicia. Aro's wife had certainly come out of herself since they joined us.

Carlisle had said she was reserved and always deferred to her husband but not any longer and it wasn't difficult to see that her new behaviour made Aro extremely uncomfortable.

I tried to keep an eye on the experiment between planning sessions with Peter, Felix, and Santiago, who had arrived by himself after a narrow escape from one of the Romanian hunting parties. These would be my commanders tonight for the raid. Santiago would stage a diversion hopefully leading some of the soldiers away while Peter would be responsible for keeping our escape route open.

Felix and I would lead the others in with Bella and it was his responsibility to get her out safely if things went wrong. When we heard a loud cheer I knew Bella was getting better at controlling her shield but it wasn't until I felt a tap on my shoulder and turned to find the room empty apart from Darius who was the other side of the table that I realized just how well Bella had done.

There was a shimmer in the air and suddenly the room was full of people, Emmett, Rosalie, Esme, Sulpicia, and Edward stood behind Bella all smiling at the look of shock on our faces.

When the others had gone off to celebrate still talking excitedly about Bella's achievement I took her for a walk to discuss exactly what had happened and to get a few minutes to ourselves, solitude was a precious thing at camp.

"Did you feel us getting close Jasper?"

"No, not a thing. How did you manage it?"

She shrugged with a wicked smile 0on her face,

"I decided it might be fun to creep up on Peter originally, I know he didn't think I could do it. It didn't take long to work out how to bring my shield up and stretch it out to cover the others although there is a point when it fades out, I need to be within about twenty feet of anyone I am shielding to be sure they are fully protected. Sulpicia says I can learn to stretch it further given time but we don't have that luxury right now. It was her idea really, she suggested I think of my shield like a mirror, it reflects only what I want it to. That way no one can see the people I am protecting but again it has its limitations."

"Numbers or distance from those you are trying to shield?"

"Both, I have to be within sight of anyone I want to shield so you can't secrete me away somewhere nice and safe before going into the Romanian headquarters, just in case you had that in mind and so far I only shielded five at a time, plus myself, for longer than a couple of minutes. I'm sorry Jasper, I know you were hoping for more but I don't want to risk it, not when it could mean losing friends."

I pulled her into my arms, proud of her achievements and though I had hoped for more this was still better than I could have hoped for.

"So, you could get yourself and three others inside the Romanian headquarters unseen?"

"Yes but I'm not sure how long I can keep it up. How much time do you need?"

I kissed her smiling encouragingly,

"You get us inside and we'll do the rest, don't worry about it. When we come out you won't need your shield, the element of surprise will be gone. It does mean changing our teams, though. I'll need Peter and Felix with me, they are our best warriors and Stefan is a great fighter, Vladimir I'm not so sure about but we can't afford to take chances."

Although I wanted to stay with Bella, just the two of us, there just wasn't time so we made our way back to the camp to find the others waiting expectantly to hear the plan. As I explained the changes to the original plan I saw Peter smile broadly and knew he'd hated the thought of missing out on kicking some Romanian ass. Aro and Marcus both objected but as I pointed out apart from their fighting to survive when they were attacked in Volterra neither of them was seasoned warriors, not any more.

"We don't have time to get you up to speed, Felix will represent you if that's what's worrying you. Does it really matter who kills Stefan and Vladimir so long as they are dead?"

"It matters to me, yes Major. They should be tried and executed for their crimes against not only the Volturi but the humans too. They have broken every one of our laws. Our people need to see justice carried out."

"You mean you want us to go in there and bring them out as captives? Would you like us to refurbish their headquarters for you too while we're at it? Fuck, let's just get in, kill them, and get the fuck out again."

Aro looked at me pointedly,

"If it's possible to bring them out as captives then we will but I will not put any of my men in danger just so you can hold a show trial."

He was going to argue but Marcus touched his sleeve and shook his head,

"We would expect nothing less of you Major, and accept your offer of prisoners if possible."

There was a certain amount of grumbling from those who had expected to be in the thick of things but they were soon silenced. There wasn't time for hurt feelings or arguments, we had to leave soon if we were to reach the enemy camp by nightfall.

"Everything is quiet there at the moment. I think their failure with the bomb set them back, they're probably busy dreaming up something new Major."

"But you are certain Stefan and Vladimir are there Darius?"

"Yes, and they are not happy. I think they were hoping the bomb might have finished us off and now they're trying to work out what went wrong."

"We should get a move on then before they decide to send a fuckin' nuke in. the last thing I need is to glow in the fuckin' dark Major."

We set off shortly after, a smaller force than originally planned for the infiltration and most would be watching our backs ready to help take our prisoners back if circumstances allowed.

With Bella's gift, getting into the headquarters wouldn't be a problem but if we wanted to bring Stefan and Vladimir out then our force was down to just two plus Bella and myself although she said she could shield maybe one or two extra if it was only for a short time. I wasn't going to bank on that, though. Peter, Felix, and I along with Bella would go in and hopefully they could escort our "guests" out. If there was any trouble that left Bella and me to watch our rear.

Once outside the rest of our force could join us and it should be plain sailing all the way back. That was all supposing our friends had decimated the rest of the Romanian army while we were busy inside. Darius would be in charge of one group consisting of Charlie, Edward and twenty others while Marcus would command the other group including Carlisle, Emmett, and the girls.

It had begun to rain as we set off and visibility was poor which worked in our favour. As we closed in on the Romanians we slowed and then stopped while Peter, Felix and myself went forward cautiously to see what level of security they had guarding the place.

There were more and they were on a higher alert than I could have wished for but then Maria was in charge and she knew her business. Nathan was nowhere to be seen and I assumed he was out commanding a patrol. The compound that had been erected was makeshift but adequate and without Bella's gift we would have been hard pushed to breach it without substantial loss of life. As it was we might just stroll in unannounced.


	31. Chapter 31

**Chapter Thirty One**

 **Stefan**

I felt uneasy despite the high level of security we had here at our front line. Personally, I wouldn't have come until I heard we had The Major and his friends either in custody or urns but Vladimir insisted. Why I had no idea, it wasn't as if he were a fighter himself, in fact, I couldn't remember the last time I had seen him raise a hand in anger.

I think he just liked the idea of being on hand when the report of the rebels destruction at the hands of our secret weapon came in. Unfortunately, something had gone very wrong. The handful of survivors who returned from the scouting party showed only too well that the rebels had outsmarted us. Somehow they had known the bomb was going to be dropped and when to avoid its fury. Now we had to make other plans which took us away from the real job of stamping our authority on our world and that of the humans.

Maria assured us that The Major would never get past her and her men and sent out several patrols to scour the surrounding swamps. She may be confident but she was thorough and that's why I had chosen her to lead our army. I was not so confident of her second in command however, he was certainly no Major. We still needed more gifts if we were to sit easy on our thrones and Eleazar was dragging his heels even though I had ordered Irina executed.

The fact that Vladimir had taken a shine to her and countermanded my order wasn't exactly a relief to him, though, I knew he hated the idea of one of his charges in the hands, and bed, of my friend and co-ruler. The only bright spot for our gift spotter was the news of his mate's success in evading our tracker.

She hadn't gone to the Cullens as far as we could tell, she had just vanished, gone into hiding until the war was over and she could see who had won. When she discovered it was us she would have a dilemma. Did she come back and beg our forgiveness? Or did she remain in hiding hoping that one day we would free the rest of her family? Of course, the latter was never going to happen, Eleazar was far too necessary for our well-being to allow him his freedom but I might be magnanimous and forgive her, allow her to return to us in some menial capacity.

"I feel something in the air brother."

I turned to look at Vladimir who had come to join me at the entrance of our cabin leaving the computers which were almost useless in the damp atmosphere and erratic power supply. If only we had our own Darius, that man could get a computer to work underwater.

"It's merely the storm approaching."

He shook his head,

"There is something more. Perhaps our enemy is preparing an attack. After all, so far we are the ones who have taken the initiative which doesn't feel right. Not when The Major is commanding the rebels. He is up to something Stefan, I know it."

"Maria doesn't seem to be concerned and she knows him better than anyone."

"Either that or our intelligence is ill informed. What if Aro and his idiot brother Marcus have taken control? That might explain their reticence to attack."

I laughed,

"Vladimir, if you had the best commander in your world standing before you, would you insist on commanding your army yourself?"

"No, but then I am not Aro Volturi. You forget his arrogance, Stefan."

Vladimir had a point but even Aro was not that suicidally stupid!

"Even the mighty Aro wouldn't be that stupid. No, The Major has some strategy worked out and when he is ready he will attack, we just have to be ready for him and we are."

Although I sounded completely sure of myself I did take the opportunity of a break in the rain to go and speak to Maria who was standing at the gate of the compound her men had hastily constructed as much to keep them confined when not on patrol as to keep our enemies out.

She turned when she heard my approach and rolled her eyes,

"Vladimir is becoming an old woman, always fearing the worst. The Major will come, along with his idiot sidekick captain Peter Whitlock and I am ready for them. He seems to forget I trained The Major, I turned him into the awesome fighting machine he became and I know how he thinks. They'll be here soon, he won't keep his fighters waiting. The bomb was a good idea but it failed and now it's down to me and my army. I suggest you return to Vladimir, soothe his fears and leave me to deal with the enemy."

"You sound very sure of yourself Maria, I hope you can back up your words."

"Of course, if you doubted me you wouldn't have recruited me to train your army, now would you?"

Deciding there was no point in arguing with her, after all, she was right, it was because she knew The Major better than anyone that we had elicited her help but the longer we waited for the expected raid the more nervous everyone became. I had anticipated the bombing might have rid us of our problem but things were never as easy as we hoped.

As I approached the cabin I heard the sounds of fighting in the distance, one of Maria's patrols must have come across some rebels. Did that mean the attack was imminent? I called Vladimir to join me ready with the soldiers left guarding the headquarters as Maria shouted for the gates to be closed and barred. Once secured the guards took up positions around the barricaded walls watching for the first signs of the enemy.

"Back inside Stefan, Vladimir. We don't need to be watching out for you and if there is an attack they'll be looking to take you two out first."

Again she was right but it didn't seem right to be cowering away while others fought our battle for us. I was about to refuse when Vladimir. gripped my arm and pulled me inside.

"What's the matter?"  
He peered out of the door before shutting it and almost running into the other room towing me with him and slamming that door too.

"There's something wrong Stefan, can't you feel it?"

"Feel what? Make sense Vladimir."

He stopped talking putting a finger to his lips and cocking his head,

"Did you hear that?"

"Hear what? All I can hear is fighting in the distance. Pull yourself together."

He glanced out of the window but the men were all at their posts being watched by Maria. And then I heard it, a faint noise outside the door as if someone had touched the door knob without turning it.

"I told you, there's someone in here with us."

"How could there be? We would have seen them, so would Maria and the guards. It must have been the wind."

He looked at me as if I were stupid and I opened my mouth to speak again when the door opened slowly but it revealed only an empty room beyond, what was happening?

We both tensed gazing around the room expectantly, there was someone here, I could feel it, even if I couldn't see who it was. Then I remembered that the Volturi allegedly had a guard who could become invisible.

"It's a Volturi attack, watch yourself, Vladimir."

I swung around trying to feel the direction from which the attack would come. One guard couldn't tackle both of us and if he went for Vladimir first it would give me time to counter him.

Suddenly the room seemed to tip, my feet went from under me and I saw Vladimir sag at the same time. I was so tired I couldn't move, all I could do was lay there and as I did so I saw four figures appear as if from thin air. The Major, Felix Volturi, Peter Whitlock and another, a female I didn't recognise.

I knew Felix and The Major had no gifts to make themselves invisible so it must be the girl doing it. Felix picked up Vladimir and Peter grinning broadly pulled me from the floor before nodding at the girl and I knew it was a signal for her to use her gift once more. We would be spirited away from our own compound and there was nothing either of us could do, we were too weak to even speak let alone shout and warn our soldiers of the intruders.


	32. Chapter 32

**Chapter Thirty Two**

 **Jasper**

Our plan went off as smoothly as we could ask for as the gates were closed on the compound we sneaked inside and then waited for our targets to be alone. Vladimir was uneasy, he had always been the more sensitive of the pair but even he couldn't pinpoint what was bothering him and once they were alone we went in for the snatch allowing the two of them to see us as we took control of them and then made our way back to the gates. The walls of the compound were too tall to jump easily with our arms full and Bella couldn't guarantee to keep us all shielded so I watched carefully for any sign we had been spotted while she concentrated on keeping us hidden as long as possible.

Outside our friends were busy keeping the patrols occupied and as more fires flared up I waited to see if Maria would send out more men but she was too clever to be duped in that way.

"Jose, Michael, go find Stefan and Vladimir, check they are OK, something is wrong. Hawk, take four men and check the compound and by that I mean every corner."

Just at that moment I saw one of the guards glance over in our direction, his eyes widening and I knew we were discovered.

"Peter, Felix, throw them over the wall and follow them, I'll keep them unconscious long enough but then you are on your own. Get them back to Carlisle and Aro, they should have returned to our base by now and stay there. Make sure our "Guests" don't escape."

I took Bella's arm and dragged her back into the shadows as the guard called out a warning to Maria.

"Can you shield the two of us as soon as the others are free?"

She nodded,

"It was just too hard to shield all of us, I'm sorry."

"No worries, it got us to the Romanians and out again with our prisoners."

She nodded and as soon as the others were over the wall I turned my attention to Maria and the guards closest to the gates who were now even more alert and ready for trouble. Hitting them with the most powerful fear I could conjure up I saw them cower away and pulled Bella towards freedom. Then I hit Maria with lethargy to stop her calling out any orders. While Bella pulled the stout iron bar that was keeping the gates closed.

When Maria started to look around for us I knew Bella's shield was back up but then the gates opened and a group of Romanian soldiers appeared, running from our own forces. They didn't see Bella but one of them ran straight into her knocking her from her feet and as she fell we became visible once more.

I shouted for her to run seeing that I had ceased having any effect on the guards and launched myself at Maria who was about to attack knocking her backwards and giving Bella time to escape through the gates. Maria was smiling coldly having recognised me.

"So Major, you just couldn't stay away from me, I'm flattered."

She bit down into my shoulder and I felt the cold of her venom as it entered my body making me feel suddenly unclean. I fought her off throwing her against the wall and making for the gates which were being closed rapidly by the soldiers who had just appeared. I used my gift to slow them and just made it out before they slammed shut but I had planned without Maria's hatred, she had followed me out and flung herself onto my back before I could stun her.

 **Darius**

We had been chasing a group of soldiers who had broken and run after we ambushed the rest of their group when I saw two bodies sail over the compound wall to hit the ground hard followed by Felix and Peter. Sending Charlie and Edward to help them by covering their backs the rest of us made our way to the gates. If the other two had been forced to jump the wall then The Major and Bella must be trapped inside,

Bella's shield must have failed. Then another group of soldiers appeared being chased by Marcus' group and we joined forces as the gate opened again and Bella came running out. The Major followed pursued by the Mexican bitch and I shouted orders to our men to carry on into the compound and finish off all who had taken shelter in there.

"Rose, Emmett, go with them, see if Eleazar is here if so get him freed, the girls too if they are here."

Marcus indicated for me to check on The Major and Bella and I chased after them to find Bella standing over Maria who was spitting and cursing at her while The Major stood holding his shoulder which was bleeding venom down his chest from a bite wound.

"You OK?"

He nodded and I turned leaving them to it while I collected together some men to clear out any pockets of resistance in the swamps.

 **Jasper**

Bella had gone crazy when she turned to see Maria on my back, her teeth sunk deep into my shoulder once more. Her eyes blazed red and she flew at her ripping her from me and taking a chunk of flesh with them. I sent Darius on his way knowing Bella needed no help to take Maria. She had the advantage of surprise plus a mate's jealous rage and her newborn strength,

Maria didn't stand a chance, especially when I waded in to help. We soon had my sire in pieces on the ground and Bella was busy making the larger chunks into smaller and smaller pieces and when I tried to stop her she hissed at me in warning. Maria had not only attacked me but bitten me too and Bella was determined to see her turned to dust for that.

Deciding the only safe option was to allow her to burn her rage off on Maria I found a dry spot to sit down and fuse the piece of shoulder muscle I had lost back in place. It stung like a bitch as did Maria's venom in the wound and I wondered what it was I had once seen in her.

"Jasper?"

I looked up to see Bella standing over the myriad of tiny pieces a lighter in her hand.

"

Any last words?"

I shook my head and she lit the pyre smiling as Maria turned to smoke and ash. Only when there was nothing left of my sire did she come to me moving my hand to look at the healing wound.

"I'm sorry she hurt you. It looks like it's healing nicely, though. By the sound of things we won."

I nodded, the screams and cries were dying out and the air becoming thick with smoke as the Romanian army was being disposed of.

"I guess we should get back before Aro decides he's sick of waiting to kill Stefan and Vladimir."

She took my hand and we began to run back towards our base picking up more and more of our celebrating rebels as we did so. Everyone had a story to tell of the Romanians they had killed and I knew there would be some celebrations once everyone was back safe. Our camp was soon full of raised voices and expectancy as the two Romanian leaders were paraded by Aro and Marcus while they waited for a jury to be chosen.

I had seen the family return safely one by one until only Edward was still missing. Asking Charlie what had happened, after all, Edward had helped bring the Romanians back safely, he informed me that once they had seen Stefan and Vladimir here he had gone back to help look for stragglers. Last in was Rosemary, a friend of Carlisle's who had been injured but insisted on getting back herself. She looked unhappy and I saw her take Esme to one side talking low. When I saw the look of horror on Esme's face I knew something terrible had happened and guessed it must concern Edward.

I joined them with Bella just in time to hear Rosemary apologising to Esme,

"I was almost back when one of the Romanians jumped me. I thought I was dead but then Edward appeared and fought him off. I staggered to my feet still weak from healing my own injuries when two more appeared. I beheaded one and Edward grabbed the other while his attacker was struggling to reach his severed leg. He told me to get away and though I didn't want to leave him he shouted he was OK. I turned and then heard a scream, he had one attacker by the throat but the second had leapt on his back and he…..he set fire to them all. I think he hoped to jump free when he torched Edward and his opponent but Edward held onto him and all three went up. There was nothing I could do Esme, please believe that. If I could have saved Edward I would but I was too far away and it all happened so fast. He died saving me."

Bella gasped, putting a hand to her mouth in shock and then threw her arms around Esme to comfort her. Edward may be dead but he had died a hero and that was some compensation.


	33. Chapter 33

**Chapter Thirty Three**

 **Bella**

I couldn't believe Edward was really gone despite Rosemary's eyewitness account of the tragedy. I expected to turn around and find him there looking at me with that irritating smile of his. Esme was heartbroken and the family closed in around her leaving Jasper and Carlisle to sort out whatever the Volturi decided with the Romanians.

A jury had been selected from the rebel army and Carlisle had been pressed into service as the judge although whether Aro thought his decision a forgone conclusion bearing in mind Edward's death I didn't know. Jasper refused to serve in any capacity but we stayed to see justice served and give Carlisle moral support.

I was surprised Darius, Peter and Charlotte hadn't stayed on although many of the rebels had already left knowing they were safe once more.

"What about Eleazar and the girls?"

Jasper sighed,

"There was no sign of them in the compound so Peter and Darius have taken a small force to the castle in Romania since it's the likeliest place for them to be imprisoned. We're hoping Carmen will hear the news and contact Carlisle or Esme. If they aren't in Romania maybe she might have some idea where else to look. I just hope whoever is holding them doesn't hear the news, panic and kill them."

I hadn't even considered that possibility and it horrified me,

"Is it likely?"

"Who knows with the Romanians, we'll just have to hope for the best."

As the trial started in the center of our camp the Romanians began to bargain for their lives, using Eleazar and the girls as bargaining chips.

"Of course, if you allow us to leave in safety we can ensure that your friends meet with no harm. If their captors hear that we have been executed on the other hand their safety is extremely precarious. It would be a pity to see three such beautiful young women murdered because of your stubborn thirst for vengeance."

I waited, what would Carlisle's reply to such a threat be? I didn't have to wait long to hear, he answered them immediately,

"No one will be safe if you are freed, Stefan. How long before you start a secret witch hunt for those who opposed you? If you want mercy then I suggest you hand over your prisoners now."

Stefan smiled and I felt revulsion wash over me, it was so malignant,

"Ah Carlisle, if only we could trust that mercy would be forthcoming but you see we both know the Volturi are behind you and this trial and we both know that Aro would die rather than see Vladimir and I leave with our lives. So, you see, you have nothing to bargain with."

There was a short recess where Carlisle conferred with Aro and Marcus. I thought he was trying to string the trial along long enough to find the girls and Eleazar before sentence was passed. So long as Stefan and Vladimir were alive, chances were their captors would keep the Denali's alive too. Jasper and I joined the small group along with Felix to hear what the Volturi brothers had to say while the Romanians were watched over by the remaining rebel soldiers.

"I am sorry Carlisle. As you know I am fond of Eleazar too but I will not allow the Romanians to leave here alive, it would be much too dangerous for all of us. They were shown mercy before and look how they have repaid us. We should have destroyed them when we seized control but we allowed them to live. I will not repeat such a lack of judgement."

Jasper spoke quietly to all concerned and the trial was recessed until the following day to give Darius and Peter time to reach the Romanian's stronghold.

"At least give them a chance to see if the Denali's are there Aro."

 **Jasper**

Darius had contacted me to let me know they had arrived in Romania after rescheduling an already booked executive plane and seriously upsetting some very influential and important businessmen. As soon as they reached the castle and found out who was there he would contact me again, hopefully before the trial restarted midday tomorrow.

Bella was terribly upset by Edward's death and I found myself feeling jealous which was not only crazy but damn stupid. She and Edward had been together in the past and despite his many foot in mouth incidents, I knew she still felt something for him. As for me, I felt his death in a different way. As the ultimate commander of the rebel forces, I was responsible for all the deaths although thankfully they had been few. To know Esme's pain and that of the others in the family at Edward's death guilt hit me hard. She knew and took me to one side explaining that she understood.

"We all feel his death but at least he died the way he would have wanted, saving another life. He always wished he was a brave as you Jasper. He told me once that he couldn't imagine how you had become the man you did after all you had been through, that it showed true courage and a strength of character he would never have."

I knew Esme was speaking the truth and that it should have helped but the sorrow I was feeling from those around almost crushed me. I found myself clinging tightly to Bella, feeding on her strength to get me through the night quite literally. We had found a peaceful spot well away from everyone else and just lay together in each other's arms needing the closeness and the peace and strength it gave us both.

Darius cut it close but just before the trial restarted, Aro refusing to wait any longer, the call came through. The girls were safe having been rescued from the castle.

"There were only a few guards still there, the others having already scampered when they heard the bad news. All three girls are fine if thirsty and scared almost witless but the bad news is that there was no sign of Eleazar. The girls thought that Stefan had taken him with them when they left. So, chances are he is still in or around their headquarters. You'd better send someone back to look for him unless of course they realized his usefulness was at an end and killed him before you got there. Maybe they'll be willing to cut a deal and tell you."

I thought that highly unlikely, they would be willing to deal of course, but Aro wouldn't because they were going to want their lives as badly as he wanted their deaths. Still, I had to try so I went to speak to the three Volturi leaders, Felix having taken his place at the side of Marcus and Aro now. As expected, Aro refused point blank, no discussion, nothing. Marcus was more willing for me to ask Stefan but refused the idea of a deal that would see them freed. It was all down to Felix ultimately and I had no idea which way he would vote.

"I understand your eagerness to find your friend, or find out what happened to him but I have to agree with my brothers that giving them some form of freedom in exchange is unacceptable. If they are allowed to live then sooner or later they will decide to try again to retake leadership of our world and me for one am not going to allow the deaths of our rebels or the thousands of humans slaughtered to have been in vain. I'm sorry Major but the answer is no."

There was no arguing, the three had come to a decision and we had to live with it but I was given leave to speak to the prisoners before the trial recommenced and had to be satisfied with that.

Of course, they knew Eleazar's whereabouts was their only bargaining chip and at first refused to answer any questions about him.

"Surely you do not think us stupid enough to hand him over just like that Major? What are you offering in exchange?"

"Nothing, I have no authority to offer a deal."

"Then I suggest you go away and get the authority or is it that they have already answered your question? Aro wants us dead, I do not see him willing to bargain, even for his old friend Eleazar."

"That's right, there is no deal but why not tell me anyway? We will find him eventually."

"If you are so sure why ask at all Major? I don't think so, do you, Vladimir?"

"Go to hell Major, you'll see Eleazar there."

The inference was that Eleazar was already dead but I sensed Vladimir was lying and that was enough, our friend was alive somewhere. Then Stefan threw me,

"Of course, it could be that I found somewhere to dispose of Eleazar and never told Vladimir. Had you thought of that? It would be more sensible to dispense with him once his usefulness was at an end. But of course, it's a decision you must make, Do you attempt to save the only man who can tell you the truth? Or allow others to silence him forever?"


	34. Chapter 34

**Chapter Thirty Four**

 **Eleazar**

I should have known Stefan had something in mind when he insisted I accompany him to watch their newborn army drill. I wondered why we were going so far from the castle when he was due to leave within hours.

"Don't worry Eleazar, we won't miss our plane but I wanted you to see just how good these soldiers are. I believe I may have misled you by calling them newborns. They were once but that was a very long time ago. In fact, they are probably the best-drilled soldiers in existence today. I will be holding them in reserve and if anything should go wrong, not that I expect it will although you haven't exactly been very forthcoming with gifts, they will take revenge on whoever they can. They have a list of those we want to see dead if we fail. Would you like to know who is on that list?"

"No, you seem confident enough in your ability to succeed. I could probably write such a list for you and not miss many names."

"How true but you see you will not need to write the list or even see the one we wrote, you will be there to witness the deaths personally."

Although I had no idea what he was talking about all soon became clear, I was to stay with this crack team of Romanian commandos whose only objective was to kill everyone who had stood in opposition to the Romanians if they were captured or killed.

When he left, I was left behind and their orders were to make sure I survived until the very last name on their list was crossed through. He had handed me a copy of the list to amuse myself with while I waited and every friend was on there as well as my family. It had become obvious to me that both Stefan and Vladimir understood the cost of defeat but they intended making very sure the conquerors did not live to enjoy their victory.

I had asked about the girls if they could not be brought here with me but I was refused,

"Oh no, that would make it far too easy for anyone storming the castle. We want them to understand that they might have saved the girls but that did not mean they would save you too. I wonder how poor Carmen will survive knowing you might be anywhere, suffering, dying even, and that there is nothing she can do to help. You see Eleazar, we think of everything, even victory in defeat. This time, I have no doubt that Aro and his brothers will ensure our deaths but that will not get them everything they want. We have fanatical followers willing to continue after our deaths so Aro will never be truly safe even if he wins and executes us."

Of course, we were cut off here, learning of how things were going only when updates were received over the radio and it was seldom I was informed, the leader of the commandos seemed to revel in torturing me by withholding information. He wouldn't even tell me if the girls had been moved. Stefan and Vladimir were certainly stretching their forces thinly and I wondered if they had known they might lose this war and this time were determined that the Volturi would not sit easily on their thrones. It was the mind of thinking Stefan was renowned for, forward planning.

I was kept in close confinement in a single room and fed only on human blood, humans captured from the nearby villages I assumed. Much as it sickened me to kill in order to survive I forced myself. If I were ever to get out of here and rescue the girls then find my beloved Carmen I needed my strength. I had forgotten how satisfying human blood was and knew it would take an iron will to turn back to animal blood again once this was over. While I waited for news or action I wrote with materials provided by the commandos who didn't seem to worry about what I was writing so long as it was keeping me quiet.

I started by writing a letter to Carmen hoping that if I didn't make it out of here she might eventually get it. I told her how much she meant to me and how the years with her had been the happiest of my life. Then I wrote to the girls, a fatherly missive reminding them that their strength lay in their loyalty to each other and begging them to look after Carmen for me if I were to die or disappear. After that, I played word games to stop myself slumping into depression at the mind numbing boredom that threatened me here in the tiny room all alone.

They were usually very careful to keep my door locked and to move away if they were going to converse but suddenly everything changed. There was a lot of noise, sounding like orders being shouted and men moving quickly and then I heard two of the soldiers talking outside my door.

"So, it's true then?"

"Seems so, they always knew it would be difficult to succeed if the Major and others weren't killed quickly. Now it's up to us to mop up. Any idea what mission you will be on?"

"Not yet, I'd give everything to be among those chosen to slaughter the Cullens though. I feel sorry for those hunting down The Major, that's a suicide mission. What about him."

I understood he was talking about me and listened even more closely to discover my fate.

As they moved away, called stridently by one of the commanding officers I slumped to the floor. Just how many groups would be leaving here to begin the slaughter of the rebels? It seemed I would be the first to die before they moved out but I still had no idea what had happened to Tanya, Irina, and Kate, their names hadn't been mentioned. I looked around but the room was bare of anything I could use as a weapon and I had to face the fact that when the door opened the first face I saw would be that of my killer.

Their orders had been to keep me alive until all the names on the list were slashed through but their commander had decided it would be foolish to drag an unwilling prisoner around with them so I was to die before they left. I just prayed that my sweet Carmen would somehow overcome the pain of. .losing her mate and go on, finding happiness once more but I knew the odds were against me, very few vampires survived the loss of their mate longer than a few months.

There was a lot more noise and then it began to diminish and I assumed the commandos were moving out in small groups spreading through the world to fulfil their duties. Would The Major, Carlisle and the Volturi understand they were still in danger? Were they likely to imagine Stefan and Vladimir contemplating defeat? What were the odds they would still be on alert once they knew they had won the war? If only there were some way to warn them, at least I wouldn't feel my life had been such a waste, my death would have had some meaning.

I pulled the single blank sheet of paper from my pocket and found the pen which had rolled into the corner of the room hidden in shadows. Writing a warning on it I added Carlisle's cell phone number and that of The Major then wrapped it around the few dollar bills I had in my pocket and thrust it between the bars high up in the wall that gave the room a little dim light.

All I could do was to hope it, might be found by some curious villager once the soldiers had gone. I had written it in Italian, English, Spanish, and Romanian and told the reader there would be a large monetary reward if the contents were followed to the letter. It was all I could do and I turned back, sliding to the floor to await my fate. An hour later I tensed as the lock was turned and the door to my cell began to open.


	35. Chapter 35

**Chapter Thirty Five**

 **Darius**

We had found the girls, terrified and thirsty, embarrassed at their red eyes and desperate for news of Carmen and Eleazar. The few guards left at the castle had already fled by the time we arrived having heard of their leaders defeat somehow.

The girls had been kept locked away but from the state of their clothes and the dullness in their eyes it was pretty obvious they hadn't spent all their time locked up alone unfortunately but they were happy to see us that is until they heard we had no idea where Eleazar and Carmen were. All they could tell us was what they had heard the guards talking about. Eleazar had been moved and it seemed there was some kind of doomsday plan.

"What the fuck is a doomsday plan? They already tried spit roasting us once. What's next? A fucking nuke?"

When Tanya looked at me puzzled I explained the bombing attack.

"Try to remember all you heard. We need a clue to find Eleazar and stop whatever Stefan planned in case of defeat, that is what they meant by a doomsday plan I take it?"

She nodded but it was Kate who gave us the first real clue,

"I heard one of our guards say that Eleazar had gone to join the commandos and the guard said he was glad he'd been left behind to guard us. He didn't want to be in a doomsday battalion. He said something about it being suicide trying to kill off the rebels with The Major still alive."

Peter shot me a worried look and I nodded, the idea of a group of assassins hunting down anyone who had joined the Volturi was a worrying one. If Stefan had really thought they might be defeated then I could see him keeping back a battalion of elite soldiers to get his revenge even if he didn't live to see it. I had wondered why they had used mainly newborns under Maria's command, they must have had some of their own crack troops. Leaving Peter to give the news to The Major and the Volturi I took Tanya with me to check out the castle properly as she knew it's layout better than we did.

Hiding in one of the old cellars we found a solitary Romanian guard and dragged him back upstairs to question. Tanya said he was a stranger to her so presumably not one of those who had guarded the girls. Peter and the other girls joined us as I began questioning him. At first he pretended not to understand my questions but a few punches from Peter soon jogged his memory.

"I don't know where they took Eleazar or where these soldiers you talk of are based. I was merely a procurer."

"

And what was it you procured for the Romanians?"

"Food, humans from the surrounding countryside. It became more difficult when our numbers began to swell. Until that is Stefan said it no longer mattered that the humans knew they were being preyed upon."

"So you lured humans to their deaths?"

He looked puzzled at my disgusted tone.

"Yes, it's what we live on so of course."

Our next find was more helpful, a map that had slipped to the floor beneath a table. On it was marked a position about eighty miles from the castle, could this be the commandos base? Deciding it was all we had to go on we moved out taking our prisoner with us for now. If he proved a nuisance then he would die, Peter had made that perfectly clear to him. The girls were just glad to be out of the castle and I heard Irina tell Kate that if she got the opportunity to kill any of the Romanian army she would be delighted. When we got close to the point on the map we left the prisoner with Kate and Irina and took Tanya with us.

I could tell that we were too late, whoever had been here was gone although not long from the intensity of the scents in the air. The spot was a series of rooms, some above ground and some below that had been the home for a number of vampires for some time. Papers littered the floor in one room, obviously the nerve centre for whatever was going on and there were several lists of names, rebels, including ourselves, the Cullens and various others that were familiar.

"Darius, I can smell Eleazar, he was here."

I followed her into a room with a thick iron door and a huge lock that had obviously been used as a prison of some kind. Inside it was empty except for a pen that lay discarded on the floor. I looked around for paper, perhaps Eleazar had left a note for anyone who came looking for him but there was nothing.

Tanya who had disappeared shouted to me from outside the small high window in the room.

"Darius, I found a note. Eleazar wrote it, a warning to us."

"Does it say where they took him?"

"No, just that there is a corps of crack soldiers with orders to kill all the rebels on a list including us and Carlisle's family. He says Stefan told him they would keep him alive to witness the deaths. That's a good sign isn't it? It means they wouldn't have killed him, that he's still alive."

I hated to burst her bubble but if I had been the commander of such a group knowing my leaders were dead I would rid myself of the "witness" after all he was just a pain and would slow them down or even try to stop them.

I picked up the sheaf of papers and went back outside taking the note from Tanya and reading it as we jogged back to rejoin the others. Peter was waiting impatiently and I handed Eleazar's note to him to read as Tanya told her sisters what we had discovered. He called me to one side, far enough away from the girls that whispered words wouldn't be overheard.

"I left the girls watching the scum bag and did a bit of spying out the area myself."

"And you found something?"

He nodded and pulled something from his pants pocket, it was a heavy silver bracelet with the words "Eleazar and Carmen for eternity" engraved on it.

"I found it close to the trail that leads down the mountain, there were signs of a fire too."

We both knew what that meant, the soldiers had decided it was too much trouble carting a prisoner around with them, they had murdered Eleazar, burning his body and just leaving or overlooking his bracelet. I glanced back to where the girls stood around the prisoner.

"Well, I guess we should tell them."

Peter did it surprisingly gently, handing the bracelet to Tanya who took it in silence then showed it to her sisters. All three stood staring at it for a few minutes as if grieving silently together.

We could have saved our prisoner if we had tried but neither Peter nor I moved a muscle as the three girls turned on him as one, ripping him to pieces in their fury and grief. When their grief was spent they burned what remained then rejoined us.

"We have to find Carmen,"

I nodded,

"She may already know Eleazar is dead, mates usually feel it."

"Nevertheless, we have to find her before she does something terrible."

"Mates don't survive without the other Tanya."

She shook her head,

"That's not always true Peter. Darius survived and Carmen has us, she's not alone."

I didn't tell them that only vengeance had kept me alive all these years with the pain tearing me apart every second of those years. I doubted we would find Carmen in time but I didn't tell her that either. Let her hope, her sisters too, until we knew one way or the other.

We decided to send the girls back to Carlisle and Esme, that's where Carmen would head when she heard the war was over and the Romanians defeated if she was still alive to hear that was. They took a copy of the list with them although Peter had read it out to Carlisle on the phone. We would continue on, following the commandoes until they split up which they inevitably would and decide our next move then.

As we travelled we decided on the weakest names, they would be the ones we would concentrate on saving. The stronger, like the Cullens, The Major and what remained of the Volturi could look after themselves.

"You know I never thought of the Romanians as being vindictive enough or forward thinking enough to come up with this shit."

"You should never underestimate people Peter. I guess if there's a chance you might go down you want to take as many of the enemy with you as possible."

"Yeah but what drives these commandos? If they've already been paid why don't they just say fuck it and go home. Stefan and Vladimir aren't gonna complain."

Peter had a point, what was driving these soldiers? Were they mercenaries? If so then they had a reputation to uphold or jobs in the future would be few and far between. If not then someone must be watching for them to complete the assignment before paying them, which raised another question, who?


	36. Chapter 36

**Chapter Thirty Six**

 **Stefan**

I could see something had changed after there was an emergency recess after only a few minutes of our trial. Esme had handed Aro a sheet of paper and after looking at it he sighed and nodded to Carlisle and The Major who sat facing us. The note was shown in turn to Marcus and Felix and they all rose and disappeared. They didn't go for long and when they returned I could see something had changed, Aro was less contemptuous of us.

"We have received news that Eleazar is dead so his murder will be added to the charges laid before you."

Eleazar dead? That was certainly not in the plan and Vladimir threw me a questioning look. Did this mean our commando unit had been found and destroyed? Somehow I doubted it if that were the case Aro couldn't help but gloat over thwarting our plans. So, for some reason they had decided to ignore a part of their orders. I suppose I could understand that it would slow them down trying to keep a prisoner incarcerated and work their way down our list. Still, the important thing was that they were still out there and Aro, Marcus and the rest of the rebels would never know a safe moment, always looking over their shoulder for the figure of death.

Aro stood looking solemn but it was easy to see that he was enjoying every moment of the proceedings just as I would have in his place.

"You are charged with reckless endangerment of our world, the slaughter of countless humans and vampires and high treason. How do you plead?"

"Does it really matter? You are going to execute us anyway. I do not recognise the Volturi as the leaders of the vampire world so I plead not guilty to the charge of treason. As for the deaths of some of our own kind, that is the price of our struggle to regain our thrones. Speaking of Eleazar I don't see how you can blame us for his death, we weren't even in…..I stopped unwilling to give them any ammunition. The humans I won't even dignify with an answer, they are mere cattle and should be treated as such. You are weak Aro, not fit to rule such as us."

Vladimir followed me citing exactly the same plea's and we waited to hear our fates.

It didn't take long for the verdicts to be reached, they didn't even leave the room, just gathered together around the table and agreed to our guilt without a single dissension. Aro was beaming as he handed down our sentences and told us they would be carried out immediately.

"I suppose you do not have the luxury of time to savour the moment, not with assassins hot on your heels. It is only a pity that we shall not be here to see you fall."

 **Carlisle**

Usually, I would have spoken up for leniency but not on this occasion, I had lost a son and a good friend and it was likely there would be more losses if the Romanian death squad was real and not some story dreamed up to scare us. I know Aro hesitated to wait for me to speak but I just nodded, get on with it and he and Marcus accompanied by Felix and the few Volturi still alive took the prisoners outside to their execution. I heard the short screams and smelled the smoke from their pyres wishing these were the final deaths but knowing they probably were not.

When the Volturi brothers came back in they looked grimly determined rather than elated.

"Carlisle. It will be safer if you and your family join us in our new headquarters in Greece. Volterra is no longer viable as our centre for government and we can work towards making the villa a secure seat of government. For now, we know only that there is a death squad looking for its targets so we need to make those targets as difficult to reach as possible which means protecting each other."

"

And what if they have access to another of those bombs? They could wipe us all out at once."

"Marcus assures me he can have a solution to that problem in place within hours if Darius will help. All we need is an early warning system and then a missile that can shoot such a bomb down at a safe distance."

"Very well, we will join you but are we really going to sit by and wait for the death squad to give up?"

"No, that would be unwise and stupid in the extreme. The Major has offered to take a small force out to hunt them down and destroy them."

I looked at Jasper and Bella who stood together looking determined and knew there was no point in trying to dissuade them.

We travelled to Greece as a group in a plane chartered by Darius usually enough safeguards that the death squad would not trace the flight and attempt to bring it down but I was still relieved when we landed and reached the villa in safety, leaving behind Jasper, Peter and Charlotte, Darius, Charlie, and several others who insisted on helping rather than sit waiting for the death squad to find us or to find its own destruction.

There was plenty to be done although the villa hadn't been destroyed once the attackers found it deserted. Huge boulders were moved miles to reinforce the wall built around the villa and patrols were sent out daily to set up an early warning system using hideouts in caves and the forest. We would know the minute a force of some size tried sneaking up on us and it would be suicide for a small group to try storming the place once Marcus had set up the radar, infra-red and movement sensors around the perimeter with help over the internet from Darius.

He had also arranged for a couple of wayward missiles to be delivered ready to thwart any attempt to bomb us off the face of the earth, in short we felt well defended and secure but who wanted to be stuck here indefinitely? We all had lives we wanted to recommence but until Jasper and his friends tracked down the death squad which had presumably split into smaller groups by now, we were stuck here.

Esme and Sulpicia were particularly worried about Carmen and the girls who had become very withdrawn since they arrived at the villa. They had initially wanted to return home to Denali to wait for Carmen to make contact but Esme was able to persuade them it was too dangerous. Carmen was unlikely to go back there until she knew the fighting was over and even then it was likely she would contact us first. Tanya spent a long time talking to Sulpicia about Carmen's chances of survival without Eleazar and although the latter tried to be as optimistic as possible she wouldn't lie to the girl.

As she told Esme,

"They deserve the truth after all they have been through and false hope helps no one. I just hope Carmen is strong enough to survive his death, for their sakes. Those poor girls are lost without her."

After discussing the matter with the girls Esme told me that she and Sulpicia had offered them a home if Carmen didn't return,

"But they refused both of us. Carlisle, I really don't think they will make it on their own. They've always looked to Carmen and Eleazar to guide them, like parents."

"You can only offer my dear, it's for them to decide what to do. I think perhaps they are thinking of revenging themselves if there is anything left when Jasper and the others mop up the opposition."

"Revenge?"

"Yes my love, don't forget that the guards holding them captive had disappeared when Peter and Darius turned up."

"You think they will try to hunt them down? Wouldn't that be dangerous?"

"Yes, but they might think it will give them some peace although I doubt it myself."

She looked at me strangely for some time then surprised me with her reply,

"I think I understand that thirst for revenge and if they do go looking I might even offer to accompany them and don't look at me like that. I may be sweetness and light most of the time but I'm also a woman and I regard the girls almost as daughters. A mother defends her young and if killing off the bastards who imprisoned and ill-treated them will help them recover then I'll help all I can, Carlisle."


	37. Chapter 37

**Chapter Thirty Seven**

 **Jasper**

Trying to find the death squad could have been like hunting a needle in a haystack but it wasn't and that was all down to Darius and his connections worldwide. There weren't many soldiers of fortune in our world but those that were guarded their secrets closely. It was this which made them sought after by the larger covens, for example, the Fraternidad, or the Romanians and then only for dirty work, taking out traitors or anyone making too much trouble when they didn't want to appear to have taken sides or been judgemental.

The Volturi had no such need, they had Demetri and the gifts, Jane, Alec and brilliant fighters such as Felix, at least they had until now. Aro and his brothers had approached me about fulfilling that role until they had stabilised leadership again and although I didn't want the job they had talked us around. After all, what was the point of winning the battle only to lose the war? If they didn't show a strong presence straight away other groups might decide to break away and that meant more instability for the vampire world.

Bella had agreed it was for the best and with Peter and Charlotte, Darius, and Demetri, on our side we made a formidable force ourselves. It was Darius who got the first lead through a friend in Somalia, Eastern Africa who had been searching for a group he had heard whispers about but could never pin down, they were known as Kyung Ah.

"The ghosts, how apt. They sure feel confident of themselves, arrogant fuckers."

"Arrogant fuckers that scare the crap out of anyone who hears of them, mainly because it's usually shortly before they disappear permanently, Peter."

"Yeah well, they haven't met us yet. Then they'll find out just how fucking scary we can be."

When Peter had finished I asked Darius to tell me everything his friend had learned about this group.

"OK, but it won't take long. The leader is a guy called Caspar and he's one scary mother all on his own. He appeared suddenly out of nowhere with his mate Soul. They recruited a small group of fighters ostensibly to fight the slave traders but in truth they changed them and started to train them, killing hundreds in the country before disappearing as suddenly as the two had appeared. Rumour says they went inland, into hiding and stayed there training secretly. After that, they were only heard of on a couple of occasions when there were murders of high-level rebels and runners."

"Runners?"

We explained to Bella that had been the name for those who opposed the local governing bodies the Volturi had set up in problem areas and went into hiding, striking against the laws and then disappearing again.

"That more or less stopped when the Volturi acquired Demetri and sent him to ferret out the runners. Some were captured or killed but some melted away. A lot of those joined up with the Romanians when they rose up and most are now dead. What this Kyung ah. have been doing since is open to conjecture, obviously cuddling up with Stefan and Vladimir."

"And you think this Caspar has made some kind of deal with the Romanians to wipe out the Volturi and whoever? But why would they carry on once their paymasters are dead?"

"I think I can answer that Bella."

Darius explained that Caspar was a man of his word, if he took on an assignment then he saw it through to the very end.

"There is no calling him off once the deal is signed. So, either we find him and his soldiers or they will find us. But I think we know one thing, they won't split up. They work as a team as there are so few of them. All we need to know is who they will target first."

Peter looked down a copy of the list we had retrieved from their headquarters,

"It's some fucking list. Do they go from high to low or start with the easy targets?"

"That's the question. Who would top your list?"

"Aro, Marcus, and Felix. Cut the head off before they get too cosy behind high walls."

"And you Major?"

"The same as Peter. The longer you leave the leaders alone the better their defences will be. Although I guess if you think you are the best you might want your targets to suffer first. It depends on how this Caspar thinks. Do we have any idea, Darius?"

"Unfortunately very little. He is supposed to be arrogant, opinionated and utterly ruthless. They say he's never failed a mission."

"Then it's time to put a stop to that, so where do we start?"

"I can track him down if I have something to go on. Do we have anything he's touched, a friend I can speak to? My gift only works if I can make a connection."

Darius smiled and reached into his pocket taking out a tarot card and handing it to Demetri.

"They leave one of these at their kills."

He took it and turned it over, it was a wheel of fortune but I had no idea what it represented. Fortunately, Darius did.

"It is always found upside down on a post or piece of furniture and represents bad luck, negative external forces, someone or something out of control. I'm not sure whether it refers to the killers or their victim."

"Whichever it's a fucking stupid idea, egotistical fuckers. It's about time they learned who the real warriors are. So come on Demetri do your bloodhound impression, I'm fed up of waiting around, especially when my name is on that fucker's hit list."

 **Bella**

This isn't what I wanted to be doing, chasing round the world looking for some kind of death squad with my dad and our friends but I understood it was necessary if we wanted to have the kind of life I dreamed of. All I wanted was to find a home, somewhere Jasper and I could make our own. A real home where we could live, invite our friends over but also have time to ourselves. Since I finally understood what he meant to me we had hardly had more than a couple of hours alone and then only in a swamp! I had seen too much death and violence although I was relieved my gift had meant I could save so many from the Romanians and now it would be needed again. I vowed that no one in our party would die hunting down these animals. I would protect us all and when it was all over Jasper and I would simply vanish. Find ourselves somewhere we could be completely alone and finally, take the time to get to know each other as mates should.

Of course, I remembered Edward and the memories now were less hostile, I would never forgive the way he had treated me back in Forks but I would also never forget his bravery and the way he lost his life. Would the others find it hard to accept me as Jasper's mate? Would they resent me taking Alice's place in Jasper's life? It didn't appear so but then again we hadn't gotten back to a normal life yet, or what passed for normal in the vampire world.

I hadn't expected to miss Renee as much as I did, after all, we hadn't been close for a while but the way she had died hurt, it made me feel guilty, She had lost her life because of me and she had done so bravely. I wanted her to be as proud of me as I was of her.

I almost giggled as I realized I was sitting here listening to my friends, my dad, and mate discuss how to track down and kill a group of mercenaries, me! A few months ago I had been at school, my only concern getting my homework finished on time and thinking what to have for lunch, now I was a vampire planning on killing others in the very near future. Would I change things if I had the chance? Not for a moment, having found my soul mate in Jasper I knew my life was complete and I was lucky enough to have my dad in this new life too.

Charlie had changed out of all recognition, my dad had been staid and slightly boring, a small town cop who was a small town boy at heart. From that, he had been thrown in the deep end as a newborn and I had wondered if he could cope with the extraordinary changes. I had been lucky, I had missed out on the newborn phase while he had struggled through it while trying to fight a war! Maybe the fighting had helped him through the aggression and rage because the man sitting with me now was neither of the former. He was thoughtful, quiet but confident holding his own among the seasoned veterans of countless vampire battles that surrounded him, in short I was very proud of him.


	38. Chapter 38

**Chapter Thirty Eight**

 **Jasper**

I asked Darius to see if he could find out anything more about this Caspar as we travelled towards Greece deciding that if Caspar was as clever and resourceful as he seemed to be by reputation then he would attack the Volturi before they became too strong but we were wrong. It was Carlisle who contacted me to say he heard from Alistair in England that four of those who had spoken out against the Romanians had disappeared and a tarot card had been left.

So Caspar and his men had struck fast in a completely different place from that which we expected. Carlisle promised to keep us informed if he heard any more news and we turned the plane around heading to the USA which had the next largest number of those who had supported us in person. The place Demetri finally pinpointed as Caspar's whereabouts.

"If they decide to move fast we'll be playing catch-up across America folks."

Demetri shook his head,

"No Peter, not now, I feel the pull. It will lead us to them easily enough."

Darius who had been busy tapping on his keyboard turned at that point,

"I'm not sure it's going to be quite so easy folks. What I've discovered is only rumor but the source is a reliable one. It seems Soul might be gifted and her gift if my source is correct, might help to explain why no one has ever caught Caspar or his group of killers."

"I take it that Soul's gift is powerful? Is she a shield?"

Darius shook his head,

"Not a shield as such, more of a time manipulator. She can slow time around her so even if you are looking in the right place you might well be too late. It means that Caspar, within her time force, will be moving much more quickly than you are. It's a neat trick if it's true."

"So Caspar has his own gift to help him but what about the man himself? What do we know of Caspar himself? Is he gifted?"

"Nothing I've heard would indicate that but he is reputed to be the most vicious and cunning fighter in our world. From the little I've managed to put together, he sounds like he might give you a run for your money Major."

 **Bella**

Things just kept getting worse, we had lost some of those who had fought with us and Caspar not only had a powerful gift in his arsenal but he was as good a fighter as Jasper. My shield would be critical if we were to win this battle. Hopefully, my shield would negate Soul's gift putting us both in the same time frame. Once we landed we checked once more with Carlisle only to find the Egyptian coven who had been unable to join us in time to fight had been wiped out, all of them and they included someone called Benjamin who could manipulate the earth so wouldn't have been easy to overcome.

While Charlie and Peter were eager for the fight I was feeling more cautious, it concerned me that I may not be able to shield us all if it came to a head to head, it was powerful but it had it's limitations as I had demonstrated when trying to shield us all when we kidnapped Stefan and Vladimir.

Demetri led us south to Arkansas where we were just too late to save a pair of nomads who had stood with us and I began to feel sick at heart, so many deaths which were unfair, people who had just stood by their convictions and although they had won still lost their lives. Stefan and Vladimir must be laughing themselves silly in hell or wherever such evil vampires went.

Esme called next to tell us that she and the girls had finally made contact with Carmen who could not believe that Eleazar was dead. She insisted they were wrong, we were all wrong, and he would come back. Even when handed his bracelet, a gift from her that he always wore she stubbornly refused to believe the evidence.

"I'm glad she's reunited with the girls, it will help her in the long run."

I nodded, I felt the same way as Charlotte and I tried to imagine what it would feel like to discover my mate was dead. Surely I would refuse to believe it rather than admit the pain that belief would bring with it.

"Do you think there is any chance he might still be alive? That the bracelet and ashes were planted there for us to find?"

"It's possible I guess Bella, but why? What would it achieve to have us think Eleazar is dead? We would be hunting Caspar and his group down, either way, to free our friend or to avenge his murder."

"I know Charlotte but maybe they have a use for him and just wanted us to believe he's dead."

She shook her head,

"If Eleazar is alive then I'd put money on him staging his own death to fool Caspar. Maybe he was able to escape and wanted everyone to think he had died in the attempt. That way he wouldn't be hunted down again would he?"

"But why not get word to Carmen? He would know how much she was suffering thinking him dead."

"Maybe because the ruse would only work if everyone believed it."

Charlotte was right of course, it was wishful thinking on my part, I didn't know Eleazar personally but he was one of Carlisle's close friends and I knew as such was very important to the Cullens. I knew what it meant to have close friends but for a vampire that must mean so much more, he and Eleazar had known each other for centuries, not just years.

We had only just landed when Alistair came through for us, he knew of someone who knew Caspar personally. The only person who did and still lived. They had met when Caspar and Soul came to the United States once slavery was abolished and settled eventually across the border in Mexico. They trained and took on small commissions for various coven leaders at a time when the Volturi lost control of some of the covens who tried to break away and control their own areas. In fact, he was active there the same time as Jasper was fighting for Maria.

"How is it you never came across him, Jasper?"

He shrugged,

"I never heard of anyone called Caspar. Is Alistair sure of his friend?"

"Yeah, he says he'll vouch for him although I understand your scepticism. Do you want to talk to this friend?"

"Yes, as soon as possible."

Alistair's friend turned out to be female, a stunning raven haired beauty called Swift. She agreed to meet us in Little Rock as she was due to fly back to England the next day, in fact as quickly as possible once she heard Caspar was on the loose in the States.

We met in a park where she could watch her surroundings and it was plain she was very nervous. She smiled hesitantly and shook hands with Jasper then nodded to the rest of us before talking in a strangely hoarse voice.

"I've heard of you Major but if I were you I would stay away from Caspar, as far as you can, he's the worst kind of killer, one who enjoys his work, it's all he lives for."

"How did I not know about him when I worked for Maria?"

She smiled but it held no warmth,

"You only hear about Caspar if he wants you to Major, besides at that time he was working alone. He'd left Soul training his group and joined the southern wars for fun. You might know him better by the name he used in those days, Solo."

I saw Jasper tense,

"Solo? But everyone thought Solo was a woman. She worked in the south, she, he, was never actually active in Mexico."

"No? Then you were lucky Major although he has a certain admiration for warriors he considers to be good at what they do. I'm surprised he didn't try to recruit you, though, perhaps he thought you might pose a threat to him, that would be praise indeed."

 **Jasper**

Solo, a name that had brought terror with it. She, he, had fought as a mercenary for some of the covens who were vying for power in El Salvador. Covens Maria was watching in case they spread their tentacles northwards. When I left their days were numbered, perhaps Solo had decided the battle wasn't worth enough to him. I knew the Volturi, who had made a bargain with Maria, had been rebuffed when they made similar overtures to Juan, the leader of the largest Salvadoran coven.

Maybe Solo didn't want to take on the might of the Volturi at the time, especially if he could see his paymaster stood no chance of succeeding alone. It would make equal sense that he had taken on the job offered by the Romanians once he could see that Stefan and Vladimir were serious in their attempt to overthrow the Volturi and strong enough to do so.

"Do you think Caspar would continue to work when his paymasters were dead?"

She nodded,

"Of course, the reputation of the ghosts is at stake and they never give up a mission once accepted. He won't stop Major until everyone he has agreed to kill is dead."


	39. Chapter 39

**Chapter Thirty Nine**

 **Jasper**

I tried to remember the little Maria had said regarding Solo when I was with her. For some reason she was excited at the thought of her, well now him, moving northwards. She wanted him to visit Mexico and I guess now I understood why. Maria held me up as a trophy, she was proud of my fighting abilities and I think she wanted to pit me against Solo. If I won then no one would ever attack her again, they were all frightened of Solo as much as they feared me. Would she have pitted me against Solo and grieved if I lost? Or would she have decided that if I lost she could replace me? I think she expected victory if the two of us had met. Maria trusted my abilities as a fighter and a commander even when she began to tire of me in her bed. How she would have enjoyed watching the battle for it would come. The only way to stop Caspar was to kill him and his followers.

My reverie was broken by Demetri's quiet voice,

"I can feel him, Major, he's going after Aro next, he thinks if he can destroy the leadership it will be easier to mop up afterwards. We need to get to Greece quickly."

"That's what you are feeling? He is headed out of the country?"

"Yes, he's broken off from his hunt here, he must have changed his mind."

I glanced at Peter and Darius who had sat quietly listening.

"What do you think?"

"I think the fucker should make his mind up and stick to it instead of changing his mind like some fucking girl trying to decide on a prom dress."

Darius was silent for a few seconds then smiled,

"I think Caspar knows we are on his trail and he's laying a trap for us. Maybe he's nervous knowing you are hunting him, Major."

"Yes, I'm inclined to agree. He knows if he appears to be making for Greece then we will follow and an airport or plane would be an ideal ambush site. Are we ready to take on the ghosts?"

Everyone smiled and nodded, I knew Charlie was itching for a fight, a way to relieve the pressure of being a newborn while Bella just wanted this over. I had felt her frustration and need over the past few days although she had said very little. She wanted us to have some time together alone and Caspar was preventing us from having that.

"Darius, find out what he's up to. Order tickets for a flight to Greece tomorrow, that should give Caspar plenty of time to set up his ambush and us too. Do you think he knows about Bella's gift?"

"Possibly but not how strong it is and don't forget he has Soul and he'll be gambling of her gift defeating anything Bella can throw at her. Do you plan on meeting him head on? What about all the humans at the airport? Is it wise to put them in danger? There are enough rumors about strange deaths as it is."

"True and no, I have no intention of fighting at the airport. You are going to send an unsecured message to Carlisle telling him we have arranged a private flight and booked scheduled flights to put off anyone watching us. Then tell him we are going to fly out at dawn. That airport you told me about, the private one, tell him that's where we plan to fly from,"

"Do you think he'll be tricked by that? He's not a fool Major."

"No, he's not, but he'll want this over with quickly, after all, he's been paid and he won't want to hang around long, not with the Volturi strengthening by the day. He might decide to just let us spring the trap. After all, if he's as confident of his abilities as rumour says he is then he won't care that we are waiting for him."

"So, what's the plan?"

"We get to the airport and wait, Charlie. If Bella's gift can negate Soul's then it will be a fight, man to man and if not…..well if not we could be in serious trouble."

"Now you're talking Major. I was afraid we were going on a fucking ghost hunt. Chasing the arrogant fucker round the world and I for one have other plans for the next few years. How many does this Caspar have in his fucking group?"

"I'm not sure Peter and neither was our informant but she did say it was small. He doesn't need a large army for the kind of work he takes on and it would be too unwieldy if he wants to move fast. I'd say no more than six, maybe eight at the most."

"I think you are right Darius so that evens the odds a little. Just one thing, though, I'll take on Caspar. If he's as good as they say he is then I'm the only one with a chance of defeating him."

"With Bella's shield, any of us could kick a ghostly ass."

"True Charlie but Bella is going to be busy making sure Soul's gift isn't affecting us and using it that way there's no guarantee she can shield us physically too."

 **Charlie**

I was looking forward to meeting this Caspar guy, he sounded like he might be a worthy opponent for us. Being a part of Jasper's small fighting group gave me a new purpose and being a vampire wasn't as easy as I thought it would be.

True I had more or less learned to control my rage although it still bubbled below the surface constantly. I found fighting and being around fighters like Peter helped me to keep my temper. Fighting was an outlet for the newborn aggression that festered inside me. Jasper had explained that it would become easier once I was over my first couple of years but that was a long time to live with rage when I'd always been a fairly placid kind of guy.

Peter seemed to understand my struggle best of all, I guess because he remembered going through the same kind of thing but when I told him that he just laughed.

"Charlie, I never got over my rage, it's there every minute of every day but I learned to channel it. I'm a human hunter and human blood helps to dampen it down somewhat but from time to time I say fuck it and go beat the crap out of someone to help."

"You fight? Who though?"

He looked over where the others were deep in discussion with Demetri then took my arm and led me further away lowering his voice as he went.

"Don't go blabbing about this but there are underground fight clubs. The Major doesn't approve, he thinks I should be able to keep my shit together without any outside help but not all of us have his self-control. So, occasionally I go off and find myself a fight or two. If you like I'll introduce you once this is all over, just keep your mouth shut to the others."

A fight club? It sounded just the kind of thing I was looking for, a safe outlet for my pent up aggression. I might just take Peter up on his offer later, I liked him, he reminded me of the new me.

Jasper called us back then looking at Peter suspiciously but there wasn't time for any more chat, Demetri had arranged transport for us and we needed to get moving if we were going to be at the airport in time to make preparations. I sat with Bella in the truck and she took my hand,

"I know things are hard for you dad but I'm glad you're here, just listen to Jasper and take care, I don't want to lose you now."

I winked,

"It'll take more than a ghost to kill me off Bella, I think I'm going to enjoy myself."

She rolled her eyes but smiled and lapsed into silence while I thought about Peter's suggestion, I'd never been a violent person but the thought of being able to take on an opponent and win without doing myself any permanent damage was appealing. Had Bella heard our conversation or was she just worried about her old dad? I guess only time would tell.


	40. Chapter 40

**Chapter Forty**

 **Aro**

We couldn't afford to worry about these renegades who were coming to kill us, The Major could be relied upon to sort out that particular problem. We had others that were far more pressing. The first thing that had to be addressed was a way to cover up the hundreds of humans who had been slaughtered by Stefan and Vladimir and their minions.

My brothers and I had made it a criminal act to kill any humans in such a way that it might make them suspicious or uncover our secret but they hadn't bothered at all and now there were murmurings that some strange creatures were loose on the planet hunting humans and killing them by draining their blood.

Of course, no one in authority was mentioning the word vampire but the population of various countries was looking into the legends of the blood drinking monsters. We needed a cover story for these deaths and we needed it quickly.

The best person for that particular job was Carlisle and he had the added help of Rosalie who had followed his interest in medicine even if she still could not work with human blood easily. The two of them and Marcus locked themselves away in a makeshift laboratory hoping to come up with a plausible reason for the deaths.

In the meantime, Felix and I were busy overseeing the building of our new defences. Of course, the local dignitaries were curious and came to call and while dealing with them took valuable time I understood the necessity for good public relations and curious humans were the last thing we needed.

They were soon swayed by the story of a religious sect wanting only peace and solitude, especially when it was added by a rather large donation towards the repair of certain buildings in their small town. When they understood there would be more funds coming, at a regular interval they were only too pleased to offer any help we might need with our own building work.

"The earthquake several years ago caused much devastation Aro and this is a poor area. We have the skills and manpower to put things right but until now, not the funds."

"Then I'm sure we will be able to help each other Mayor. Funds will be made available for your town and in return, all we ask is that our privacy is respected."

It had turned out to be much easier than I had expected but then the local town and villages were far poorer than I had anticipated and money spoke louder than words as a result.

When I joined Felix again he was looking more optimistic,

"It hasn't taken as long as I feared to transport the rock we needed to finish the defences although hiding our strength from local shepherds and foresters hasn't been easy. You did well with the Mayor."

"I find humans easy to manipulate because money is so important to them. However, our own funds are running low Felix."

"Perhaps not as low as you think Aro. Caius had been hoarding wealth for centuries in a secret account in the Bahamas as well as secreting valuable antiques in a warehouse in Milan. Marcus has been monitoring him for years."

"I see, why was I not informed of this?"

"That's not the question you should be asking Aro. What you should ask is how much and have we gained control of it?"

"Well? I assume you would not be bringing the subject up unless the answer to that was we do."

Although I was suspicious why Marcus hadn't told me about Caius' hoard for the moment the fact we had plenty of resources was more important. It meant I could finish the new citadel here in Greece and replace some of the beautiful works of art I was used to admiring in Volterra.

"How is Carlisle doing with his task? It won't be easy to come up with an explanation for so many humans to be torn to pieces and/or drained of their blood. I'm amazed more notice isn't being taken of the more superstitious humans who are screaming vampire attack."

"If this had been a few hundred years ago they would be but people do not believe in monsters any more Felix. They place their faith in science not folk-tales which in this instance works to our advantage. I just hope Carlisle comes up with something soon. The longer the mystery remains so the more danger our race is in."

"I'm surprised the guardians haven't tried to fuel the flames, it would be a great opportunity for Johnny H to rid the world of our kind, with the help of the human race."

"True but what proof does he have? He can hardly tell that his kind exists now can he? Proof of giant wild animals prowling the world ready to fight vampires isn't a tale that would go down well, he could find his own kind being hunted down and destroyed instead. No, he will hold his peace and see what happens in the long run."

Carlisle and the two others looked weary which was something new in a vampire but then it was intellectual and mental weariness not physical. They had been taxing their brains to find a solution to our problem and I hoped for good news when I visited them.

"

Aro, I was coming to see you so you saved me a few minutes. I think we may have an answer to the problem although it, of necessity, involves more deaths of innocent humans."

I waved that concern away, Carlisle was far too soft hearted when it came to the human population, how it must have tortured his family to rely even partly on human blood in the swamp.

"Tell me."

"The only story with any chance of success would be a new disease, a brain disease that turns normal human beings into violent monsters who imbued with super strength literally rip their prey to pieces. I think we can find a bacterial solution, a genetically modified one admittedly but that really doesn't matter. So long as human scientists can identify it the story will work. It's the carrier that is the problem but again I think I have a solution, our age-old enemy the rat. Luckily all the massacres have taken place in rural settings apart from Volterra of course and we already decided to put that down to an earthquake and escape of poisoned gas which turned the occupants into savages."

"Rats? Of course, humans are ready to believe any ill of the creatures. This won't be the first time they are blamed for the death of thousands of humans. They never lived down responsibility for the plague. How much longer do you need?"

"In order for it to be believable, it will be necessary to infect some rats and let them loose in an isolated settlement where the sickness can be contained."

"Very well but surely there is a risk of your special rats escaping? Not that it would concern me if there were another plague of course but I'm sure it would you my friend."

"Yes it would Aro but the rats we are using will be poisoned before they are freed, they will be dead before they can spread more than a few miles and I am hoping there will only be a few deaths, just enough to satisfy the human scientists that they have found the culprit."

"Very good. Have you chosen a settlement?"

"Yes, there is one a few miles from here which are home to some of the bandits who prey on the local farmers and travellers. You would think we were still in the dark ages to hear of their exploits. It will be helpful in another way too, the area will be quarantined keeping humans from straying too close to the citadel."

I left them to work out the final details happy that most of our problems would be at an end. Now all we needed was news from The Major that Caspar and his mercenaries had been hunted down and executed. Then we would be free to do a little house clearance of our own.


	41. Chapter 41

**Chapter Forty One**

 **Bella**

As soon as we got to the airport, a quiet private one outside the city Jasper explained how the trap would work. He and I would be waiting as if to board a plane while the others would be spread around the small terminal building ready and waiting.

"If Caspar sends some of his men in to check out the surroundings then we let them do so and leave. If he thinks it's worth triggering the trap then they will come all together and then the fight will be on. Remember they are ruthless, well-trained fighters, do not give them any opportunity because they will see and take it without any hesitation."

"And if his creepy girlfriend uses her mojo on us?"

"Then let's hope Bella's mojo is stronger Peter or we could all end up dead."

"Amen to that Major. Right Charlie, let's find ourselves a nice cozy little spot to do some ghost spotting."

It had been decided that Peter and Charlie would work as a team while Charlotte palled up with Darius leaving Demetri as our solo spotter since he would be the one to sense their arrival first…...hopefully.

Peter's itch would also come in useful but it wasn't as pinpoint accurate as Demetri's. Bella and I went inside relieved to find the place deserted. Darius had made a few calls and the airport had been closed to other traffic due to a chemical leak from a cargo plane that had landed an hour before.

We had arrived as the decontamination crew and that meant fewer people involved if things went badly wrong.

Bella had wanted to have her shield up from the moment we arrived but we had no idea how long we would be waiting and her shield took tremendous amounts of energy to operate. If Caspar didn't take the bait or waited until closer to the time we were due to arrive for our flight then Bella would be running on empty just when we needed her most.

"Demetri will give us warning enough, he'll sense they are close even before they are near enough for Soul's gift to work."

"You hope. Do we have any idea of her gift's range?"

"No, but few gifts work over any distance and those that do are like your's energy hungry and therefore do not last for long. Caspar won't chance to lose his advantage by using her too soon. Don't worry Bella, this will all be over soon."

She smiled,

"I hope so. You know since you and I became close all we have done is fight for our survival and watch our friends die. I'd like a chance to act normally, like a young couple. Go on a date, take a holiday, maybe even find somewhere of our own to live. Is that too much to ask?"

"No, and I promise you will have it all Bella, really soon. Just concentrate on getting through this and the world is yours to choose from."

I had no idea how long we would have to wait but things moved much more quickly and in a much different direction t=from what I expected. We had only been waiting for a couple of hours when Darius contacted me,

"I don't have the faintest idea what's going on but there's a human here, one of the airport officials who has been hanging around like a bad smell."

"What does he want? Send him away for fuck sake."

"He says he has a message for The Major but has to deliver it in person."

Bella and I glanced at each other,

"You think it's from Caspar?"

"Who else? What do you want me to do?"

"Send him in with Charlotte but watch out, it may be a trick."

"Don't worry Major, I'm already on high alert. Demetri says Caspar is getting close but he's not here yet."

"Unless his mate is using her gift, be careful, he might be closer than you think."

A middle-aged man entered the building with Charlotte looking nervous and confused. I approached and held out my hand.

"I understand you have a message for me."

He looked at me through thick-rimmed glasses,

"Are you The Major?"

"Yes. Who gave you the message?"

He took an envelope from his pocket and held it out, his hand trembling slightly.

"A woman appeared by my car, I never saw her approach but she just handed me the envelope and asked me to deliver it personally to The Major. She said It'd be safe enough, that the chemical spill was actually an exercise. Is that right? No one seems to know what's going on but the safety executive says they have it as a real emergency."

"Don't worry, you're safe enough, just as she said."

"Can I go then? I have to tell her I delivered it or….."

"She threatened you?"

He nodded,

"And there's something really odd about her, she scared me."

We watched him scurry out with Charlotte who would return to her post at Darius' side.

I opened the envelope and pulled out a single sheet of paper, a note written in a flowing script and signed Caspar,

"Major Whitlock,

I have long wished to meet you and now it seems I have the opportunity. I have heard much about you, your fighting skills are legendary. Wouldn't it be interesting to see who is the better of us? I certainly think so and I offer you a deal. We meet in single combat here, now and the winner takes all. If I win you die and I carry on with my work for Stefan and Vladimir while your friends leave peacefully. If you should win, you won't of course but I have to give you a chance, then I die and my mercenaries disband. Should you refuse my offer then all bets are off and we will attack and kill not only your friends who were stupid enough to accompany you but your so called family and every one of them will die a long and lingering death. If you agree to my terms simply open the doors and turn all the lights on and off twice. Then I will come to you with only a few of my soldiers to see fair play.

Your superior in every way,

Caspar."

I screwed up the note and threw it in the nearest trash can,

"Well, we know what he wants, and what kind of an egotist he is."

"Are you going to accept his challenge?"

I smiled at Bella pulling her close and kissing her before replying,

"Of course, how could I refuse such a challenge?"

"You will win won't you?"

"Of course. He may be a good fighter but I doubt he's fought anyone decent in years."

"You will be careful won't you? I can't lose you, Jasper."

"You won't, besides I have you here ready to capture them in your shield if they try anything."

"Why don't you just let me shield you from the beginning? You've nothing to prove."

"To him, I have Bella, to him I have."

I knew she was uneasy but I was confident I could beat him in a fair fight, just how fair this particular fight would turn out to be I had no idea but he wasn't the only one with a secret weapon!

I called the others in, there was no point in us being scattered, not of his main force was going to be concentrated here and it would be easier for Bella to shield us if he should resort to foul play. Demetri and Charlie didn't look as confident as the others but then they'd never seen me fight in the flesh close up while Peter and Charlotte were relaxed enough. Although I knew they and Darius would be watching for any underhand dealing. I knew they would watch my back although I thought at least to start with Caspar would be happy to fight man to man, it was when he began to lose that we could expect trouble. Once we were ready I instructed Charlie to send the signal and then we stood to wait for our first glimpse of the legendary Caspar.

There was movement in the doorway and eight figures appeared, a couple followed by six others, all with the look of hardened warriors. The couple moved ahead and I saw Caspar and Soul in the flesh. He was a tall man with long dark hair tied back at the nape of his neck with a leather thong, deep red eyes and a confident, even cocky, expression. He wore a sleeveless leather waistcoat unbuttoned over a black shirt and faded denim, his feet bare. Soul was pretty enough but there was something in the eyes that detracted from the beauty of the bow shaped lips and long blonde hair that swung freely down her back to her waist. She wore a long denim skirt and a simple white tee shirt with long sleeves. Both looked us up and down and then Caspar spoke holding out one hand,

"Major, it's good to meet you face to face. This is Soul, my mate."

I shook the hand, feeling the steely strength in his grip then nodded curtly top Soul. She was the more dangerous of the two, I could feel the menace in her emotions while he was calm and confident. There was no way she would allow him to lose this battle whatever she had to do and I wondered who was really the leader of the mercenaries, Caspar or her?


	42. Chapter 42

**Chapter Forty Two**

 **Bella**

I didn't like either of them but of the two it was Soul who drew my attention, she was the one I disliked most of all and she was the one I suspected of being the most devious of the two. I kept my eyes on her while Jasper and Caspar exchanged "Pleasantries" and I could see Peter eyeing her uneasily. So, he felt the same malignancy in her. Caspar's words registered though I never once took my eyes off of him.

"You seem very confident in your own abilities but I wonder when was the last time you faced an opponent who wasn't afraid of you?"

 **Jasper**

Something was very wrong here, Caspar was confident yes but he was also nervous and that was contradictory. He wasn't the warrior I had expected to meet. I'd met many such over confident young men during my time as a vampire and each time I knew without a doubt that their feelings would be their downfall. But this was different and I wondered if Caspar were really the warrior his reputation made him out to be or if his success was largely down to his mate. Her gift would make all the difference but did he know about Bella's? Without Soul's help, how would he fare? Well, we would soon find out.

He was smiling and looking at the rest of my group then at his own,

"It seems you are outnumbered Major, still that will only serve to end things more quickly for them, and for you."

He shrugged out of the waistcoat and unbuttoned the shirt throwing both to one of his men who caught them and looking around dropped them onto a chair. I could see why he had done so, there were scars on his torso, enough to strike fear into other vampires, the mark of a true warrior. Soul was staring at me intently waiting for my reaction but I remained impassive if he wanted to play mind games, so be it. Peter moved forward and I pulled off my own tee shirt hearing an intake of breath from everyone in the room who didn't know me well. Caspar was scarred sure but nothing like the number I wore. I had earned mine the hard way, with muscle and teeth while I was now certain he had help from his mate. His eyes had widened at the sight of my scars and he threw a look at Soul who simply smiled encouragingly.

 **Bella**

I tensed, to me Jasper had always been gentle, kind and loving and even when he fought I guess being in the heat of the battle I had been concentrating on everyone around me. Here in this empty space confronting his opponent, my mate suddenly looked dangerous, and I knew if he affected me then he must be affecting Caspar even more strongly. The two men faced each other waiting for someone to make the first move.

Then there was a ripple in the air and when it cleared Jasper was backing away venom streaming down his arm from a vicious bite on his left shoulder. I hadn't seen the attack and neither had the others which meant Soul was using her gift, well two could play at that game. I concentrated wrapping a shield around Jasper and the next moment there came that strange rippling but this time when it cleared Caspar was frowning and I knew he had attempted another attack but this time I had foiled him.

I smiled brightly at Soul although what I really wanted to do was to rip her pretty little head from her shoulders.

"Let's play nicely shall we? New rules, no interference from outsiders and that means you, Soul."

Peter broke out in fits of laughter at her black scowl but I knew Caspar was now worried. I knew Jasper would beat him without Soul's help and I thought he realized the same but there was nowhere to run, he had to face his adversary and fight, this time for real.

 **Jasper**

I hadn't seen the first attack coming, I just felt the pain as his teeth sliced into my shoulder causing an ugly tear which bled venom making my left arm weaker and my grip with that hand slippery. I realized Soul had used her gift to slow time for us and allow him to attack in safety but now things were different, Bella was shielding me and his second attack failed, he couldn't get close enough to touch me.

"It's just you and me Caspar so come on, try me now."

I beckoned him closer with a crooked finger and he roared in frustration as he launched himself at me only to be repelled by Bella's shield as Soul once more tried to aid him.

"If we keep on like this no one is going to win so what say we leave the girls out of it and fight man to man. Come on, show me what you've got."

He glanced at Soul who shrugged,

"You don't need my help Caspar, you can take this upstart alone. Agreed Major."

I nodded to Bella telling her to drop her shield but I knew she would use it again if Soul broke her word. This time, Caspar moved more slowly, cautiously, looking for a weakness, a way to attack that would succeed. He thought he had hurt me, slowed me down but I'd. .fought with much worse injuries that was just an annoyance but I let him think he had scored a disabling hit and feigned a slip. He took advantage of that immediately and closed in. Once in range, I grabbed him and we spun around each trying to get the upper hand. He was good, very good but he was no match for the God of War and when we broke he staggered back a bite mark on his shoulder mirroring my own and a mangled right hand.

 **Bella**

Watching Jasper fight like this was

exciting and I felt myself tense when the two men clashed but it soon became clear that my mate was the better fighter. He was slowly breaking Caspar down and Soul looked dangerously agitated. I tensed ready to pull my shield down to cover Jasper but she had other targets in mind and with a shouted command her men attacked us launching themselves like missiles at Darius, Charlie, Peter and Charlotte while she turned her attention on me. This time, I felt the ripple as well as seeing it and the sensations were strangely disorientating.

I felt a sharp pain in my throat and understood she was trying to rip it out, to incapacitate me and my shield before I could bring it into play. Unfortunately, for her, I was too fast and my shield snapped into place pushing her back violently to smash into the wall while her men struggled to try to engage our fighters who were now safe from them. The only two I didn't shield were Caspar and my mate, I knew Jasper wouldn't want me to stop him now.

The others understanding that for them at least the fighting was at an end stood together watching their leader as he was crushed under The Major's onslaught. I had never seen such a coldly clinical fighting style, Jasper wasn't interested in any flourishes or showing off he merely crushed the life out of Caspar one attack at a time until he lay on the ground in a pool of venom, a wreck of a man while apart from the initial wound on his shoulder and a couple of detached fingers that Caspar had snapped off Jasper was unharmed.

He then turned his attention to Soul addressing her as he fused back the fingers Peter had bent down and retrieved then handed to him.

"It looks like your figurehead is finished, you'll have to come out of the shadows now won't you Soul? It was a clever idea, hiding behind Caspar but it's just you and me now."

"Yes, it is so shall we dance Major?"

She threw herself at Jasper all snapping teeth and flashing talons and I tensed feeling sick. Would he be able to take her too? After fighting Caspar so hard? I glanced at Peter who was smiling blithely unconcerned and that made me feel better. If Peter wasn't worried then neither would I be. It didn't take long to see that Peter was right, Jasper dispatched Soul with the same ruthless efficiency he had used on Caspar with the help of my shield which I wrapped around Soul so she could still fight but couldn't utilize her shield to give herself an unfair advantage.

When it was finally over the bodies were burned where they had fallen, Peter and the others taking care of the remainder of Caspar's men. I had felt this was a little unfair as they were no longer a threat surely? But Charlotte explained that The Major and Peter never left an enemy alive to come after them and the men who had been killed were all cold blooded killers themselves.


	43. Chapter 43

**Chapter Forty Three**

 **Carlisle**

I hated doing it and it went against my oath as a doctor but the specially treated rats had to be set free in a small community to do their worst. Rosalie offered to do the release but I went with her, being responsible for the deaths of even a few humans was a terrible guilt to carry with you. I wanted to spare her that but she had grown since the Volturi were ousted by the Romanians, especially since she found herself involved in a fight for her very life and I was proud of the confident woman she had become.

Once freed we waited for the rats to do their worst and it didn't take long. Soon the humans began to act violently and the authorities moved in quickly to quarantine the area. It took a little longer for them to discover what had happened but once they discovered the dead rats and dissected them they found what they were looking for, the reason for the terrible slaughter in different countries.

The papers and the internet were full of it, the mutated strain of the disease that had caused headlines some years before in cattle, spongiform encephalopathy. Of course, there were many scientists with differing theories of why rats had suddenly developed the disease but the only thing we were interested in was that the humans accepted it as the reason for all the deaths. As long as there were no more folk tales of blood-drinking monsters running around killing. Although, in a small number of fringe groups there was still a theory that the Chupacabra had extended its diet to include humans. Luckily the mainstream humans merely laughed at the "crazies" which was just what we wanted. Our world was safe once more.

I suppose I should have expected some kind of backlash from Aro in respect of those who had stood with the Romanians. He and his two "Brothers" Marcus and Felix arranged for small death squads of their own to go out and hunt down anyone who had fought with Stefan and Vladimir.

The rest, those who had remained neutral or merely spoken out against the Volturi were spared which relieved me. There had been too much death, it was time to heal now, to pull together as a species.

Aro did ask if Esme and I would join them in Greece,

"You fought for us, you believe in what we stand for, why not join us Carlisle, bring your family with you. We need you more than ever now."

"We are already committed, Carmen believes Eleazar is still alive and we have promised to help her find him. Besides I don't believe in everything you stand for Aro, you know that."

"Perhaps I will change with your help, Carlisle. Besides I have Felix to contend with now too and poor Sulpicia is all alone since Athenadora and Chelsea have both died."

He had to make do with a tenuous perhaps although I was sure Esme would have no wish to join the Volturi. She had her hands full with poor Carmen who flatly refused to accept her mate was dead. The girls insisted on taking her back to Denali and Esme accompanied them while the guys and I undertook to search for him although we had little hope of finding anything, especially Eleazar alive and well.

We split up to extend the search as widely as possible. Emmett, Rosalie and I went back to Romania, to the Romanian castle while Peter, Charlotte, Jasper, and Bella, would hunt around the headquarters of the Romanians in the USA Darius, and Charlie, who had shown an aptitude with computers would comb the dark net looking for any sign that he might be alive but unable to find us. Personally, I never expected to see my old friend again which saddened me greatly.

 **Jasper**

I thought looking for Eleazar was a waste of time, there was no reason for Caspar and Soul to keep him alive, in fact if they had any sense they would have killed him as soon as they heard Stefan and Vladimir were dead. Carlisle was upset we hadn't taken any prisoners but he had no understanding of a vampire warrior's attitude to enemies. None of us wanted to spend time watching our backs for revenge attacks and neither Soul nor Caspar would have told us anything anyway. Personally, I'd had it with fighting, I was worn out from the tension and the memories fighting always brought back to the surface. All I wanted was to go away, disappear with Bella and forget everything but my beautiful mate.

However, as the question of Eleazar's fate was still very much open according to Carmen, Bella and I agreed to go back to the last place we knew the mercenaries had been and Peter insisted on joining us. Charlotte was coming too but then there was some crisis back home with the horses and she went back to deal with that leaving Peter to go with us and Charlie decided to string along too.

"Darius doesn't need me and I'd rather be on the move than sitting in front of a computer for hours at a time."

I thought he just enjoyed Peter's company and preferred to be close to Bella for now too.

It didn't take us long to get back to their old headquarters which was still deserted. I guess none of the surviving stragglers would risk coming back and being discovered here. We split up to comb the surrounding area, if Stefan and Vladimir had Eleazar close by then Caspar and Soul would have been here at the same time but they wouldn't have been wandering around which meant there had to be another camp close by.

Eventually, Charlie found it, a depression in the grounds leading into a small cave system. I could smell our adversaries if only weakly so this was the place. All we had to do now was to make sure Eleazar's scent was not here.

If they had kept him alive as a witness he would have been with them here, if not then hopefully Carmen would accept that they had killed him as soon as they heard their paymasters were dead. Of course, there was no sign Eleazar had ever been here, no scent, no sign of somewhere a prisoner might be held and we went back to Greece with the news to tell Esme deciding it would be better if she broke it to Carmen and the girls.

The new headquarters was almost finished, nothing as big and grand as Volterra but then the Volturi were no longer as grand either. Aro had learned a hard lesson and I thought he would probably be a better man for the lesson. They were recruiting hard to fill the gaps in the Volturi guard which was still overlooked by Felix even though he was now one of the leaders.

He tried again to persuade me to join him but Bella and I wanted no more than to leave all this behind us and once Carlisle and the others returned from Romania we would be homeward bound wherever that might turn out to be.

When news came in from Rosalie we were all astonished, they had found Eleazar alive and well, in hiding. One of Caspar's men had seen the writing on the wall and changed sides, saving Eleazar by offering to "execute" him and leave proof of his death for us to find if we came looking.

He and Eleazar had then gone into hiding up in the mountains waiting for news of what had happened. They had not heard the latest, that the Volturi were back in power and all five were on their way back, flying straight to Alaska so Carmen could be reunited with her mate.

"Does this mean it's finally over?"

"Yes Bella, that's it. Are you ready to go home too?"

She threw herself into my arms and I understood just how desperate she was to be away from all this. I wasn't sure what Charlie would decide to do but I guessed he might want to come back with us. I understood but it meant more time before the two of us could be truly alone. When he asked if he could speak to us alone I braced myself,

"Look, Bella, I know you worry about me and what I'm going to do if I don't go home with you and Jasper but I think I'll give it a miss. I've got the whole world and eternity stretching out in front of me and there's plenty I want to see and do."

"But you have no idea how to behave around humans dad."

"Hey, I'm not a complete idiot Bella. I watched you and the others besides it's not like I'm going to be on my own. Peter and Charlotte have invited me to stay for a while and Darius wants me to spend some time with him. I even got an open invitation to join the Volturi, who knows?"

Bella was horrified by the last but I was more concerned by the invitation from Peter.

"Charlie, just promise me one thing."

He smiled,

"If I can Jasper, what?"

"Don't get roped into anything by Peter."

"Like what? He's your friend isn't he? He wouldn't get me into anything dangerous."

"Oh yes he would because that's Peter. If he gets you involved in one of his schemes, a fight club maybe? Just say no. Otherwise, I'll have to send Bella to haul your ass back."

He rolled his eyes but laughed,

"Don't worry, I can look after myself and who knows, I might get Peter involved in something dangerous myself."

I shook my head, the two of them together was going to be more than even I could cope with! But it meant Bella and I were free to go off on our own and that was fine by both of us. We didn't hang around long, someone was sure to see a need for us to stay if we did. Instead, we arranged a sightseeing trip of the United States to give us time to be alone, after all, if we didn't know where we were going from day to day then neither would Peter, or Charlie or anyone else who might take it into their heads to try and track us down. Darius had been warned by Bella in the nicest possible way that if he was asked to do so he was to decline or she would ensure all his computers were shielded from him indefinitely! Then we left, alone at last and planning to stay that way for as long as possible.

THE END

Jules is in hospital so the next story will be following as soon as she is back on her feet but she wants to thank everyone who is following her. Many thanks John.

Many thanks John.


End file.
